Hard pressed consumers, already facing massive raises in the cost of milk, bread, eggs, tortillas and other staples, may soon be asked to bear a fifteen percent hike in the cost of electricity. The reason, not surprisingly, is the surge in world oil prices. Saying that it’s already absorbed more than it can bear, Belize […]
Tourism: it’s big business in Belize with a constituency widely spread both geographically and financially. With a new administration taking over in Belmopan, the industry was all ears yesterday as the minister made his first major address to stakeholders. News Five’s Janelle Chanona reports. Janelle Chanona, Reporting Despite a slow start, tourism in Belize has […]
It had been rumoured ever since the new government released a letter from the Venezuelan government asking what happened to a ten million U.S. dollar gift given to Belize just prior to the February seventh election. Today, under increasing pressure to account for the funds, former Prime Minister Said Musa finally came clean and admitted […]
The World Trade Organization may have stripped Belize’s sugar and banana industries of their preferential trade agreements with the European Union, but the E.U. is attempting to compensate with technical assistance to make those industries more competitive on world markets. Today Prime Minister Dean Barrow and E.U. Ambassador Marco Alemanni signed two agreements that will […]
“These things take time”. That’s the word out of Belmopan tonight as questions continue to surround an official letter which indicates that Venezuela gave Belize twenty million US dollars in grant money, and not ten million as the Musa administration had publicized. According to financial secretary Joe Waight, an official inquiry to banking officials in […]
In other news from Belmopan, the government has announced this week that it would absorb the most recent rise in fuel acquisition costs to keep the pump price the same but today, the world price of oil shot up to one hundred and three dollars a barrel. According to the press release issued this week, […]
The financial secretary is still waiting for a letter from the Venezuelan government to clear up what thus far amounts to a ten million dollar mystery. Despite a press release issued today which chides the new government for “playing political games”, leaders of the defeated P.U.P. administration have yet to offer an explanation as to […]
Belize continues to diversify its sources of electrical energy. Today Belize Electricity Limited and Belize Aquaculture Limited announced the signing of a fifteen year agreement under which the shrimp farming operation will sell up to fifteen megawatts of firm generating capacity to the national grid. The cost of the power will fluctuate with the world […]
One of the major areas of new investment anticipated over the next five years involves the petroleum industry. Already the nation’s largest export, oil is expected to provide an extra boost to government revenues for at least the next decade. What is not clear, however, is exactly how that hard currency will be spent. According […]
Ceremonies were held last night for the inauguration of the Airport Development Project at the Philip Goldson International Airport. The project, begun in 2004, involves a two thousand, six hundred foot extension of the runway to a length of nine thousand, nine hundred feet, expansion of the apron, enlargement of arrival and departure halls and […]
The man who will drive the effort to attract new airlines and the expansion of existing routes is Martin Copeland. Copeland, a Canadian based consultant with long experience in the airline industry, believes that despite the tight conditions faced by airlines around the world, Belize has the attractions to get their attention. Martin Copeland, Aviation […]
Earlier in this newscast we presented the Police Department’s annual crime statistics and to stay with that theme we went looking for another set of important numbers: tourist arrivals. According to the Belize Tourism Board, they’ve been having a little bit of difficulty coordinating the count with the Immigration Department, but through the end of […]
In the aftermath of Hurricane Dean, much was said about the damage to buildings, public utilities and farms, but practically nothing was heard about the impact on one of Belize’s most important earners of foreign exchange: the fishing industry. According to those on the water, Dean’s wrath cut deep, affecting approximately two hundred residents who […]
For months now, oil has been a hot topic around local discussion tables. How much is really down there? How much revenue will the industry pay out to Government? And more importantly, how will the ordinary Belizean benefit from the discovery? In an attempt to answer those burning questions and put a couple conspiracy theories […]
While it’s common knowledge that the Commercial Free Zone at our Northern border is something less than leak proof, for most Belizeans who took advantage of the zone’s open day on Saturday it was a new experience. And as News Five’s Marion Ali reports, despite all the hype, restrictions, and predictions of chaos … a […]
Thousands of Belizeans are expected to head to north on Saturday to make their first Government sanctioned entry into the Corozal Free Zone. And while we are not sure what kind of deals they’ll be able to enjoy given the restrictions placed on shoppers by Customs and BAHA, this afternoon the Belize Chamber of Commerce’s […]
After much negotiation, government officials and the business community have come to agreement over new fees to be implemented at the Western border. Overnight parking has now been set at fifteen dollars for small vehicles and thirty for container trucks and buses, down from the initial twenty and forty dollars imposed by B.M.A. To use […]
Oil is in the news tonight—for a number of reasons. Firstly, Belize Natural Energy has confirmed what the Geology and Petroleum Department has already announced. That is, the new well called Never Delay Number One has produced oil and gas shows which warranted testing. The drilling of that test well was completed November sixth and […]
In an update to the situation at the Western border over new charges to truckers and importers, this morning representatives of the Border Management Agency, the Chamber of Commerce, the freight operators, and officials from the Ministry of Tourism met at the Chamber’s Belize City office. Word out of the meeting is that the points […]
And while members of the public have been wrapped up in the case of the missing fishermen, tonight there are disturbing reports that come tomorrow no one will be able to buy butane. Following meetings in Belmopan this afternoon, all importers and distributors have decided to go on strike until Government agrees to a nineteen […]
Meanwhile, another hot issue brewing on the front burner is that of the standoff between importers and government officials at the Western border. Today representatives of the Border Management Agency, the Ministry of Finance, and the Organization of American States met in Benque Viejo in an attempt to find a solution. The situation has brought […]
Over the last decade, tourism has become a major player in the Belizean economy. But today as partners in the sector gathered for the twenty-second annual general meeting of the Belize Tourism Industry Association, News Five’s Marion Ali discovered that there is still plenty of room for improvement. Rosella Zabaneh, President, National B.T.I.A. “Tourism is […]
No matter where you travel across the Caribbean, one of the most imposing buildings in any country is invariably its Central Bank. And that’s fine, because no matter how badly a nation’s economy may be functioning, in the world of high finance, the impression of strength and stability is crucial. News Five’s Janelle Chanona reports […]
The Musa administration’s announcement this week that it is considering to de-reserve a portion of the Bacalar Chico Marine Reserve, with the idea of selling it to interested investors have caught local conservation groups off-guard. According to the Association of Protected Areas Management Organizations, which represents eighteen environmental groups working in Belize, Bacalar Chico is […]
Following Cabinet’s decision to rescind the highly favourable terms of two oil concessions granted to two local companies, today Minister of Natural Resources Florencio Marin went on record defending Belmopan’s motives. The interview with News Five’s Janelle Chanona took place in the minister’s Belmopan office with Inspector of Petroleum Andre Cho and Chief Executive Officer […]
