UNDP gives environmental agencies a helping hand
While no one can deny the bounty of Belize’s natural environment, it is also clear that we must protect it. Today, seven environmental agencies received money from the United Nations Development Programme, and the Community Management of Protected Areas Conservation Project, COMPACT, to fund initiatives to sustainably develop Belize’s natural resources. Friends for Conservation and Development received forty-five thousand dollars, their second disbursement for the Mopan River Protection Initiative, a project launched to encourage environmentally safe practices to the river by both Belizeans and Guatemalans. The Toledo Association for Sustainable Tourism and Empowerment, TASTE, accepted a thirty thousand dollar cheque for the community co-management of the Sapodilla Cayes Marine Reserve. According to Rene Ogaldez, project co-ordinator of COMPACT, the monies given out today will benefit Belize now and in the future.
Rene Ogaldez, Project Co-ordinator, COMPACT
“We gave five cheques to partners. B.T.I.A., which is the Belize Tourism Industry Association got a check for forty-five thousand dollars, and that is for the training of tour guides. We gave one to Belize Audubon Society for the same amount, and that is to be used for community consultations and stakeholder education in the northern part of Belize, namely Chunox, Copper Bank and Sarteneja. We gave one to TASTE, who are going to do education of the communities in the southern part of Belize, namely Punta Negra, P.G. and Monkey River. And to the Belize Zoo for education throughout the country and one of the features that we were really impressed with from the Belize Zoo’s proposal was the portion that they’re going to do a science fair dealing mainly with the Belize Barrier Reef.”
The cheques total two hundred and twenty-seven thousand, eight hundred and fifty-four dollars and were presented by Velda Aguet, Chairperson of the National Steering Committee of the Global Environmental Facility Small Grants Programme.
