Association partnership between logistic-natives e.V. and SAPOA (KVP)

In October 2026, our long-standing association partnership with SAPOA was officially incorporated into the KVP funding programme for the next three years. Our project management office is based in Arusha, Tanzania, where it works in close cooperation with the PAPU (Pan African Postal Union) in the heart of southeastern Africa.

KVP projects

In KVP projects (Business Membership Organisation Partnerships), German chambers of commerce and associations cooperate with their equivalents in partner countries, contributing their skills and know-how to support the development of the private sector. The goal is to strengthen local institutions as providers of business-related services and as representatives of the interests of small and medium-sized enterprises. KVP projects focus on:

• Improving internal structures and management at the project partner
• Developing new service offerings for companies
• Supporting advocacy for better framework conditions

German development organisation sequa gGmbH has been implementing the KVP programme on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) since 1991. To date, more than 400 KVP projects have been implemented in over 100 developing, emerging and transition countries. Over 80 German chambers of trade and industry, trade associations and employer institutions have been involved as project sponsors, reaching more than 460 chambers and associations in the partner countries.

SAPOA: postal companies in southern and eastern Africa

The 14 postal companies that make up the Southern Africa Postal Operators Association (SAPOA) operate in countries of southern and eastern Africa with very different economic and institutional starting conditions. Most member countries belong to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) with a population of around 380 million. Despite economic growth, unemployment, informal employment and poverty remain key challenges. Growing e-commerce is opening up new market opportunities, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). However, progress is hampered by regulatory hurdles, limited competencies and inadequate logistics and shipping solutions. High costs, long transit times and low reliability of the shipment of goods make it difficult for SMEs in particular to access national and regional markets.

SAPOA member countries in southern and eastern Africa

Due to their nationwide infrastructure, their public service mandate and their integration into the network of the Universal Postal Union (UPU), the postal companies are ideally placed to support e-commerce and economic participation, even outside urban centres. At the same time, they are under considerable pressure to adapt in the face of falling letter volumes, growing competition and limited modernisation capacities. SAPOA has institutional legitimacy as a regional association and implementation partner of the SADC, but has only limited human and financial resources. To date, there has been little development of its own training, consulting and income-generating services.

Goals of the partnership

Against this background, the German association logistic-natives e.V. and SAPOA intend to deepen their cooperation, which has existed since 2021, in a first three-year phase of a PartnerPlus project. SAPOA is to be gradually strengthened as a regional service provider that supports its member postal companies in transforming the postal sector in the context of e-commerce development. To this end, the association’s visibility and networking will be improved, needs-based training, consulting and information services will be developed, and a pilot model for a postal hub will be implemented with a selected postal company.

German and European companies contribute technical expertise, networks, and training and consulting services. At the same time, they have the opportunity to establish contacts and long-term partnerships with players in the African postal, logistics and e-commerce sectors, to explore market and business potential, and to gradually develop viable fields of cooperation and business cases.

Project partner: Southern Africa Postal Operators Association (SAPOA)
14 member postal companies in southern and eastern Africa · Partnership with logistic-natives e.V. since 2021