25th UPAEP Congress Cascais Portugal April 2026

The 25 th Congress of the Postal Union of the Americas, Spain and Portugal (UPAEP) took place from 13 to 17 April 2026, in Cascais. The Portuguese delegation, led by the Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of ANACOM, Sandra Maximiano, included representatives from the regulator and the designated postal operator, CTT – Correios de Portugal.

The Congress, which is UPAEP’s highest body and responsible for approving the strategic guidelines for each four-year cycle, adopted the Union’s Strategy for the “Portugal Cycle”, the Cooperation Policy-one of UPAEP’s core activities—as well as the budget and the General Secretariat’s action plan for the forthcoming cycle.

More than one hundred proposals and documents resulting from the work of UPAEP working groups over the past four years were also approved, covering areas ranging from sustainability to digital transformation, postal security and technical cooperation.

The 25 th Congress also re-elected UPAEP’s Secretary-General, Franklin Castro of El Salvador, who will continue in office during the “Portugal Cycle” until the next Congress in 2030. The venue of that Congress, to be held in Brazil, was also approved in Cascais.

The main pillars of the “Portugal Cycle” were likewise endorsed, including the strengthening of UPAEP’s e-commerce ecosystem through the establishment of new strategic commercial agreements, as well as the enhancement of postal network security. Strengthening South-South cooperation was also identified as a key future action.

Other highlights included the ceremonies marking the launch of the UPAEP History book and the commemorative stamp issue, as well as the joint UPAEP-ERGP Forum, held under the Portuguese presidency of ERGP. Discussions focused on the resilience of postal networks as critical infrastructure, the need for international regulatory harmonisation, and the sharing of practical reform experiences between Europe and the Americas.

Whether in plenary sessions or in the numerous bilateral meetings held in parallel, the 25 th UPAEP Congress proved to be a defining moment for setting the strategic direction of the postal sector in the region, bringing together key institutional stakeholders and fostering decisions that will shape the next cycle.

Credits: Photo Factory