The Nigeria Postal service Department came into being with the establishment of the Nigeria Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) on January 1, 1985. NITEL emerged from the merger of the Telecommunications arm of the defunct Post and Telecommunications Department of the Ministry of Communications with the former Nigeria External Telecommunications Limited (NET). Through the promulgation of decree No. 18 of 1987, NIPOST became an Extra-Ministerial Department. The decree provided among other functions of NIPOST, the following: To provide and operate facilities for collection, dispatch and distribution of inland and overseas mail at reasonable cost. To provide and operate facilities for remittance of money through the money or postal order systems. To provide and operate philatelic services in Nigeria. To print and provide postage stamps for payment of postage tariff and payment of stamp duties. To represent Nigeria in its relations with other postal administrations and other bodies concerned with postal services. Prior to 1992, NIPOST operated as an Extra-Ministerial Department in the Ministry of Communications while Decree 18 of 1987 went through various amendments. In response to the call to grant NIPOST some measure of autonomy, the Federal Government promulgated Decree 41 of 1992 and classified NIPOST as a Government Parastatal having the following basic functions: To develop, promote, and provide adequate and efficiently coordinated postal services at reasonable rates. To maintain an efficient system of collection, sorting and delivery of mail nationwide. To provide various types of mail services to meet the needs of different categories of mailers. To establish and maintain Postal facilities of such character and in such locations consistent with reasonable economics as will enable the generality of the public to have ready access to essential postal services.