The National Emergency Management Organization’s response teams have been activated countrywide as more rains are expected to affect the country throughout the rest of the week. NEMO’s latest advisory indicates that a slow moving tropical wave is affecting the country. This comes after a low pressure system caused severe flooding in northern Belize over the […]
Dr. Melissa Diaz-Musa, Director of Public Health and Wellness, M.O.H.W. “There’s definitively continued transmission in Belize of COVID-19. The numbers continue to go up as is expected with especially a variant like omicron which we know is extremely more transmissible than the original variant. And of course, we don’t have a lot of public health […]
The rollout of pediatric Pfizer vaccinations continues across the country, as healthcare professionals headed to schools to administer at least the first jab to children five to eleven years old. The vaccine is not mandatory, and while there is some hesitancy at all levels of COVID vaccinations, sixty-nine point eight percent of the target population […]
Today at the Biltmore Plaza in Belize City, a closing ceremony was held for a project funded by the Government of Japan. It was a project for Enhancing the Healthcare System through the Provision of Medical Equipment to the Government of Belize, particularly the Ministry of Health and Wellness. News Five’s Duane Moody files this […]
Marion Ali, Reporting The lesson at hand is not to make anything edible, but rather how to clean your plate after you eat. These citizens hail from all over Belize. For the next three weeks, fifty of them will be attending a course at the Belmopan Civic Centre to learn how to make liquid soap, […]
Energy security remains a primary concern for many countries in the region, particularly in light of the war in Ukraine. These countries are exploring the possibility of doing business with Venezuela, an oil-rich nation that is willing to partner in addressing this issue. The United States, however, has brought down heavy sanctions on Venezuela, notwithstanding […]
It’s been a couple of months since bus operators started to receive their fuel subsidy to stay afloat in the transportation industry. The government’s hope was that six months would buy time for the war in Ukraine to end or subside. That conflict has been blamed as the primary reason for the fuel price hikes […]
Going back to the regional issue of correspondent banking, Foreign Minister Eamon Courtenay also touched on the crippling effects of the regulations in place, as well as the actual whereabouts of ill-gotten funds that are being invested in houses, luxury vehicles and boats in other first world countries. Eamon Courtenay, Minister of Foreign Affairs […]
In December, the Government of Belize announced that it would conduct an amnesty program for foreigners who have been living in Belize and want to officially make the Jewel their permanent home. The program will look at registered asylum seekers and irregular migrants who have children born in Belize prior to 2020, or who have, […]
A little over one hundred thousand Belizeans, living in rural communities, are between the ages of fifteen to twenty-five. Of that number, it is estimated that twenty-five percent of that youthful population is unemployed. Fairtrade International has found that youths are three times more likely to be unemployed than adults. The problem, says the global […]
G.O.B.’s decision to contract Florencio Marin Senior as an advisor to the Ministry of Agriculture on a salary of thirty six thousand dollars a year has not come without its backlash. The President of the Public Service Union of Belize, Dean Flowers, in an interview, referred to Marin’s hiring as quote, “disrespecting young people”. So, […]
On Tuesday night, we told you about the Ministry of Sustainable Development, Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management issuing a warning to companies that are purporting to sell carbon credits without approval from the Government of Belize. The ministry said that private entities selling carbon credits can affect the country’s carbon budget and quota. C.E.O. […]
But the informal sale of carbon credits is ongoing, with G.O.B. receiving no royalties or taxes. Since the return from COP26, a national framework is being worked on to regularize this process. C.E.O. Williams confirmed today that the Rio Bravo Conservation Trust by Programme for Belize has been one of the longest standing entities to […]
Is a moratorium on logging a foot? There is a shortage of economically viable species of hardwoods within Belize because there has been a high level of harvesting and little reforestation. The Forest Department has recommended a moratorium. C.E.O. Doctor Kenrick Williams explains what the ministry is doing when it comes to short-term logging licenses […]
Remember Daniel Chi who was suspended, placed on administrative leave, because he was purportedly rude to Prime Minister John Briceño? Well tonight, we have confirmed that his file is with the Ministry of Public Service and the Public Service Commission where a recommendation has been made for his dismissal as a public officer for insubordination. […]
On Wednesday, over fifty women in the fishing industry, from across the country, will converge in Placencia for a two-day forum. The Fifth Women in Fisheries Forum is part of a Green Climate Fund readiness project entitled “Enhancing adaptation planning and increasing climate resilience in the coastal zone and fisheries sector of Belize. It will […]
A project funded by a new scheme within the Inter-American Development Bank’s Japan Special Fund will see support being given to Belize to develop a program to promote sustainable growth of the blue economy. The project will be implemented by the bank over a two-year period. But what does this mean? According to Blue Economy […]
It has come to the attention of the Ministry of Sustainable Development, Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management that there are a number of companies purporting to sell carbon credits. In a release issued by the ministry today, it says that G.O.B. has not authorized or sanctioned any of these transactions. The release says “the […]
A weather system that crossed near southern Belize over the last few days has dumped heavy rains in that part of the country, resulting in flooding in at least two villages, up to early this morning. News Five spoke with NEMO’s Southern Regional Coordinator, Charles Leslie who said that assessments have been ongoing to see […]
Transformation has come to the rural community of Machakilha. The village is situated in the southernmost part of the country and the population is made up of families of Mayan decent. For generations, the community has gone without electricity, proper access to potable water, and a roadway suitable for commuting to and from the village. […]
While we caught up with Alfonso Putul and his family three years later, the purpose of our visit to the far-flung community of Machakilha on Friday was to attend the inauguration of the village’s solar and water systems. Oscar Requeña, the Minister of Rural Transformation, spoke about the transformative work that is taking place within […]
None of the roadworks, solar energy introduction, and water supply upgrades in Machakilha would have been possible without contributions from key partners. The Government of Belize, Barefoot Children’s Ministry, Plenty Belize, The Global Environmental Facility, The G.E.F. Small Grant Program, and U.N.D.P. all teamed up to make these projects a reality. Representatives from these organizations […]
Dangriga will have a state-of-the-art fire station in about a year from now, through funding of one point two million U.S. dollars from the U.S. Government. Ground has been broken in that municipality to mark the start of construction. Present were the Minister of Sustainable Development, Orlando Habet, Dangriga Area Representative, Minister of State Doctor […]
Last week, we reported on A.S.R./B.S.I.’s multi-million dollar investment at Big Creek Port. The company’s improved raw sugar and molasses logistics at the port is expected to create savings for both A.S.R./B.S.I. and sugar cane farmers in the north. When we caught up with the Minister of Agriculture Abelardo Mai in Belmopan today, he explained […]
We also asked Minister Mai for his thoughts on the Leader of the Opposition’s recent trip to a carrot farm in San Carlos Village in the Orange Walk District. Following his visit, Opposition Leader Shyne Barrow accused Minister Mai of allowing local carrots to rot in the field by approving import license for Mexican carrots. […]
