The Super Bond, as well as other external debts owed to international creditors, is also an area of concern for government given the financial crunch it has found itself in as a result of the economic shutdown. While being circumspect in response to whether Belize can continue to meets its external debt obligations, Prime Minister […]
The online portal of the Unemployed Relief Fund closed on Friday; as many as eighty-one thousand persons applied for benefits, having lost their jobs due to COVID-19 or were jobless before the virus. As of Friday, government paid out three million dollars in unemployment relief, but there are still thousands of applications to review. Today, […]
The two-week lockdown winds down at midnight on Saturday and according to the Attorney General Michael Peyrefitte, public transportation will resume for essential workers who will be required to travel by land, but wearing face masks. Water taxis can also function but only for essential services and we are not yet allowed to go to […]
Prices for crude oil on the international market plunged dramatically to historic lows, setting off expectations that the savings will be passed on to consumers here. The state of emergency has restricted travel and movements so consumers have been using less fuel. Finally, a break comes tonight at midnight and Belizeans will feel a little […]
Earlier today, the media caught up with Belize City Mayor, Bernard Wagner at a handing over event at the K.H.M.H. As you know, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought business to a halt and government coffers are running low. Earlier this week, central government wrote to nine town and city councils in respect of subventions requesting […]
There has been major inactivity at town councils across the country. Many of its services they provide are not considered essential and as such, several of the council’s departments have been closed to the public. The Belize Mayor’s Association has been in discussion on the loss of revenue at the municipalities which are struggling with […]
As a former banker, Mayor Bernard Wagner also spoke about the current state of affairs as it relates to persons who find themselves unable to meet their obligations at financial institutions, having lost their jobs due to the shuttering of businesses. Now, that he is on the other side of the table, the mayor calls […]
The situation in agriculture, particularly for livestock producers, is dire as thousands of heads of cattle are grazing in pastures that are quickly drying up amid the drought. The Ministry of Agriculture is working feverishly to address the frustrations of the agro-productive sector regarding a freeze in the informal trade of cattle with neighboring Guatemala. […]
The COVID-19 state of emergency, along with the abrupt closure of the unrecognized trading route at Bullet Tree Falls, has left many farmers holding on to livestock that cannot be sold outside of the country. This, notwithstanding a formal trade agreement established between Belize and Mexico, has left the industry hanging in the balance. According […]
The government is not discounting the possibility of a second wave of coronavirus. With a soft reopening of the economy, the preservation of life and health remains a priority and as such Prime Minister Dean Barrow stressed the importance to maintain strict adherence to social distancing and personal hygiene. PM Barrow also gave an update […]
The Ministry of Health has not reported any new cases of COVID-19. But while that is encouraging news, the government will be extending the state of emergency up until the end of June. In its weekly cabinet meeting on Tuesday, several issues were discussed in regards to the COVID-19 crisis. One of the pointed issues […]
The Belize City Council, like other municipal governments around the country, has been feeling the effects of COVID-19 pandemic. One of its employees, Hubert Pipersburgh was the fourth person to have contracted the virus and he was also the first patient to die from the disease. With the lockdown of the country, the council had […]
Even as City Hall has closed its doors for now because of the state of emergency, there are a number of essential services being provided, including sanitation and market vending. Other services such as the licensing of vehicles, the renewal of driver’s license and payment of taxes can be done online. Mayor Bernard Wagner says […]
More than thirty thousand applications have been approved for persons to receive assistance from the COVID-19 Unemployment Relief Fund. About seventy thousand persons have so far applied for the assistance, which provides them with seventy-five dollars a week to weather the ramifications of the coronavirus pandemic. The Social Security Board is dispersing the money to […]
The losses triggered by COVID-19 to the business sector are enormous and the road to economic recovery will be a long and arduous journey. Many businesses will have to rebound even as thousands of Belizeans are unemployed. The more stringent lockdown will be lifted on Saturday which coincides with when a peak is forecasted. Opposition […]
There was an unprecedented event today in the international markets that should have some bearing for Belize. The coronavirus pandemic caused oil demand to drop so rapidly that producers have no space to store the crude oil. With most of the world in lockdown and air and other travel on halt, use of oil is […]
In other news of a financial nature, Belize’s ratings on Standards and Poor, have taken a hit. The agency has lowered the credit ratings from a “B” negative to a “C.C.C.’’ all due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. As you know the tourism industry has come to a screeching halt with airline and […]
Last week, we reported on the impasse between the chairman of the Bullet Tree Village and Livestock Producers who export informally to Guatemala. The Chairman, Sabino Pinelo, held a meeting of the COVID-19 Task Force on Agriculture Committee that farmers cannot expect to traverse through the village if they did not pay a toll. As […]
As you know, there are a number of food programmes for persons who have, in some way, been impacted by COVID-19. Some of these programmes have run into hurdles due to issues relating to social distancing and overcrowding. In respect of the Unemployment Relief Programme, so far a total of seventy-two thousand two hundred plus […]
All this week we’ve been reporting on the economic impact of COVID-19 on the agro-productive sector. As you’ve heard earlier this week, the Spanish Lookout Community is facing a number of challenges. One sector is the dairy production. The state of emergency has placed restrictions on movements of people but the milking of cows is […]
In addressing the nation during a televised statement on Thursday evening, Prime Minister Dean Barrow touched on a number of issues as they relate to the coronavirus catastrophe. Among those concerns is the dire economic and social impact of COVID-19 on the country. Despite approving a fiscal budget for the financial year 2020, Belize’s economy […]
The communities of Ladyville and Lord’s Bank have not been exempted from the impacts of COVID-19. A large number of residents work in some way in the tourism industry which has all, but collapsed rendering them jobless early in the crisis. The leaders have set out to put in place a plan to mitigate the […]
The impact of the COVID-19 is being felt everywhere. While the agro-productive sector is considered essential – it is also not immune to the shocks locally. As we’ve reported this week, this sector is trying to adjust and respond to the changes. The poultry sector has started to feel the pinch; the largest poultry producer […]
Economic hardship during the coronavirus crisis is affecting virtually all Belizeans as the unemployment lines continue to grow. As of this afternoon, as many as sixty thousand persons have filed for relief. In Dangriga today, customers became irate when they could not access funds that were wired via Money Gram from the United States. While […]
Revenue to government coffers has been shrinking due to COVID-19 and the state of emergency. So is the government broke? That is the question we asked Financial Secretary Joseph Waight today. According to Waight, large departments like the Belize Tax Services and the Customs Department collecting up to thirty million dollars in revenue a month […]
