The migratory periods during the 20th Century were very profitable periods for the Barbados Post with records showing that in the 1950s, British Postal Orders paid to Barbadians exceeded $3 million.

In 1958, Mr. Robert Clarke, the first Colonial Postmaster of African ancestry, had the foresight to introduce a shift system and extended business hours in order to better manage the increased business activity of the Post Office.

In an effort to contribute to the personal and professional development of postal workers, departmental training courses for clerical staff, Postal Assistants and Postmen were introduced in 1961.

The Barbados Philatelic Bureau was established in 1968 for the purpose of promoting the sale of postage stamps in the very lucrative market worldwide.

Following exposure to international developments in the postal service as a result of participation in conferences around the world, a highly specialised International Postal Affairs branch was introduced. This division was to be headed by a knowledgeable and experienced senior postal official. In 1971 therefore, a post of Assistant Postmaster General responsible for international postal affairs was established and Mr. Lloyd Weekes was appointed to the position on August 16, 1971.

As a result of involvement in the UPU, Barbados was able to host its first international postal conference, the pre-Congress Conference of Commonwealth Postal Administrations, from September 2nd to 5th, 1979. This meeting served as preparation for the 1979 Universal Postal Congress in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, during September and October.

In 1984 the Barbados Government, for the first time, authorised the Postmaster General to sign the Acts of the Hamburg Congress “ad referendum” in addition to the Minister with responsibility for the postal services. Prior to this Congress only the Minister was authorised to sign the Acts of Congress.

Another significant development in Barbados’ postal services was the introduction of the Express Mail Service to the USA and the United Kingdom from October 1st 1984. The idea to develop this service to attract new business and retain old customers came as a result of a Barbados delegation’s attendance at an International Express Mail Service Conference in Washington in 1983. This prompted Barbados to negotiate its first Express Mail Agreements with the USA and the UK during 1984.

Today, in spite of competition from commercial delivery services, the Barbados Post can boast of door-to-door delivery to 90,000 households in Barbados. Thus contributing to our reputation for a highly developed postal service for all citizens.

This fine reputation has made Barbados the region’s leader in postal policy.