By the end of this month, the SA Post Office (SAPO) will be completely online, says Ntsundei Madzunya, SAPO CIO.
Of the 1 003 Post Office branches and additional Post Office-owned outlets, there are only four left yet to be set up, he says.
The online upgrade project, which began in April 2004, was co-ordinated and executed in-house by SAPO's IT teams.
Network partners were brought in to support the systems and according to Madzunya, the "considerable funding" involved will be worth it, since the SAPO will now be able to offer its customers a new range of services on its existing Web site, www.sapo.co.za.
These include financial transactions, in which customers will be able to conduct Post Office bank transactions online, as well as allowing them to buy airtime, pay their utility bills and receive their pensions through the Post Office.
In cases where Telkom landlines were unavailable to connect branches, a VSAT satellite connection was used to get them connected.
Another feature added to the upgraded SAPO service is an SMS parcel tracking service. This operates via the Web site or by sending an SMS message to a dedicated number.
Parcels are scanned at different stages of the system as they move from one hand to the other, says Madzunya, showing whether the parcel is at a counter or in transit.
The system is already in place but the formal launch will take place early next year, he adds.
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