Belize-Cuba Joint Commission holds 11th session
They are recognised for their excellent health care system and education in this hemisphere and true to this, in Belize their doctors and nurses have been toiling in villages, towns and cities across the country. This week, a Cuban delegation is in Belize to move the relations forward. The meeting of the eleventh session of the Belize-Cuba Joint Commission, which alternates in both countries on an annual basis, is underway at the Biltmore Plaza. Heading the delegation is Requeijo Cual, Vice Minister of Foreign Investment and Economic Cooperation. Today he spoke to News Five on the state of relations between the two countries and about the health of former Cuban President Fidel Castro.
Orlando Requeijo Cual, Cuba’s Vice Min. of Foreign Investment and Economic Coop.
“Well, he is improving. He is improving his health, he is very disciplined and he is making his treatment and has the challenge to continue working. So this is a very, as I mentioned before, this is a very strange situation because Americans are were preparing for the day that Fidel wasn’t at the power. But Fidel is not in the power but he is still there. We have an excellent relationship. The relationship has been consolidated for many years and now we’re having a very historical moment of our relationship. We are celebrating now the eleventh session for the Cuban Commission and we have been having this meeting the last eleven years in a row so it’s not any kind of intervention, this is also very valuable that we have the possibility to find good time to consulate our respective agendas to keep this mechanism which is very valuable for bilateral relationships. Just now I was talking something about the possibility to develop culture, learning and the p[reparation to art instructors for the youth of Belize, the Belizean people and why not. Many tourists from Europe and from Canada and from different places, even from South America, they are travelling to Central America or they are travelling to Cuba but I think that a very good formula would be to combined the Cuban and sight seeings with the Belizean sight seeings. You have something here which is something that we don’t have, which is the Mayan culture and all this historical values from your tradition and your history. We don’t have it but we have the possibility to share the Cuban culture, the Belizean culture and to propose a better travel package for many tourists all over the world.”
Jose Sanchez
“Are there any plans to withdraw the Cuban doctors and nurses from Belize?”
Orlando Requeijo Cual
“Not at all. Not at all. Our plan is to keep our medical here but at the same time to train more nurses and doctors from Belize in Cuba. So the general idea is to have the national resources, the human national resources, train it from Cuba and to have it here in Belize. It would be very good that in the near future all the doctors and nurses, they are national people. It’s not necessary to bring anyone from outside. Maybe one specialists or one special surgeon.”
To coincide with the visit of the Cuban delegation, this week has been dubbed as Appreciation and Solidarity Week with Cuba by the Belize Mayors Association.
