The Upper House met in special session today in a marathon sitting that’s reminiscent of Monday’s extended House Meeting. Among the bundle of bills brought before the Senate for approval was a proposed piece of law that makes way for the arrival of the Blue Bond, a unique financial configuration that will see the disposal […]
The approval of the Blue Bond is indeed a momentous occasion for all, since the country’s external debt will be reduced by half a billion dollars, thanks to the new arrangement. Lead Senator for Government Business, Eamon Courtenay puts it all into perspective. Eamon Courtenay, Senator for Government Business “Madam President, today on this […]
NGO Senator Osmany Salas holds the firm position that it should not be credited to any one party and that it shows political maturity that such an initiative can commence under one administration and be concluded under another. Osmany Salas, Senator, NGO Community “This is not about the PUP, it is not about the […]
In economic news, during the month of September 2021, imports took a giant leap, up by over seventy percent while exports dropped, compared to the same period last year. These are the latest statistics coming out of the Statistical Institute of Belize. According to S.I.B, in September Belize imported goods valued at one hundred and […]
We’ve been hearing about blood clot issues that COVID has had on survivors from other regions, and now, there are reports that Belizeans who have been infected with the virus are also having blood clot issues months later. President of the Belize Medical and Dental Association, Dr. Uldine Wright told News Five today that while […]
Dr. Wright said that from this past Monday and for the next four days, Belizean doctors are engaged with their international counterparts in the Belize Medical and Dental Association’s thirty-seventh Medical Congress discussing medicine and the coronavirus. What doctors abroad have been witnessing and coming up with to treat their patients could be of relevance […]
On Tuesday, we heard Internist, Dr. Fernando Cuellar say that members of the medical community were calling for mandatory vaccinations in Belize after several of their members, the most recent of whom is pediatrician Dr. Cecilio Eck has become infected with COVID. BMDA President, Dr. Uldine Wright told News Five today that their two hundred […]
Earlier this month, the price per gallon of liquefied petroleum gas, butane, increased by thirty-eight cents. The price hike was attributed to a combination of supply issues as stock levels in the United States continue to dwindle in the face of strong external demand. On Tuesday, the Briceño administration introduced a bill to amend the […]
A raft of bills pertaining to existing loans that the Government of Belize has with banks in Taiwan was brought before the House of Representatives on Tuesday. The Briceño administration is seeking to defer payments on these debts in order to save money over a two-year and three-year period, respectively. Prime Minister John Briceño, who […]
While the opposition leader acknowledges the assistance that the Taiwanese government has provided over the years, he says that there is no immediate relief for Belizean motorists across the country. Notwithstanding G.O.B.’s ability to save millions of dollars by staying its payments to the Export/Import Bank and Mega International Commercial Bank, it has been unable […]
Today, the media was invited to witness the early harvesting of carrots from the fields in San Carlos Village in the Orange Walk District. The orange root vegetable was of good quality and was a test carried out by the farmers to plant earlier than usual in an effort to supply the market demands. […]
Among the issues that have been affecting the industry is price gouging. This is being carried out by those described as “predatory persons” who mark up the prices, burdening consumers. Regarding recent reports that some carrots seem to rot quickly, Orange Walk District Agriculture Coordinator Barry Palacio says that all carrots – imported or local […]
But in order to compete with the imported carrots from the region, which are being sold at lower prices, farmers from the New River Farmers Cooperative wants help from government. Soil quality, a climate-resilient variety of the carrot, among other things will take significant investment. Today, we asked Agriculture C.E.O. Servulo Baeza about what government […]
The Briceno administration is making good on its word, following an announcement on September third, that government would be working to restructure its external indebtedness by retiring all of its U.S. dollar bonds due in 2034. This would bring some finality to Belize’s crushing Super Bond. By entering into an agreement with The Nature Conservancy, […]
The conservation component includes the setting aside of key areas in the country that will be designated for protection and management. A majority of those areas, according to Prime Minister Briceno, fall within the Bacalar Chico National Park near northern Ambergris Caye. Prime Minister John Briceno “The new areas to be designated by Belize […]
The Briceno administration, after having introduced a new budget for the fiscal year 2021 at the end of March, has tabled a bill that would make way for an act to appropriate additional sums of money for use within the existing financial calendar. It was the first of two proposed laws described as General Revenue […]
Prime Minister John Briceno explains that the need for additional monies arises from the previous administration not adjusting for the decline in revenue during the 2020 fiscal year. As for the so-called sparse details that were presented with the first supplementary bill, the Minister of Finance castigated the Leader of the Opposition for those comments. […]
Former Central Bank Governor Gustavo Manuel Vasquez demitted office abruptly in mid-August when his appointment as head of Belize’s monetary authority was canceled by the Governor-General. Vasquez succeeded Ambassador Joy Grant on April first and, during his short-lived tenure, was unable to see eye-to-eye with the bank’s board of directors. Vasquez’s sudden departure meant that […]
The scourge of violent crimes across the country that continues to threaten citizen security remains an issue of national importance. The number of gang-related incidents that are being recorded on a daily basis is cause for concern and that enduring problem is not lost on the former Leader of the Opposition. Today he asked for […]
A police officer is being accused of shooting an eighteen year old from Belize City in the stomach. The victim is Jason Smith, and according to witnesses a police officer shot him indiscriminately. But, an official police report says officers were conducting a search on several male individuals in an open lot behind the Zoe […]
On Monday night, security guard Andy Smith lost his life in a traffic accident up north. Around 9:45 p.m., Smith was travelling in a Nissan pathfinder heading towards Orange Walk but lost control of the vehicle between miles forty-five and forty-six on the Philip Goldson Highway. The fifty-eight-year-old was found dead about ten feet away […]
Family, friends and medical professionals are at this time praying and hoping for pediatrician, Dr. Cecilio Eck, who is tonight critically ill with COVID. The pediatrician’s illness is a massive blow to the profession and the many little patients he treated over the years. Internist Dr. Fernando Cuellar spoke to us today about his colleague who […]
Drivers who use premium gasoline need to prepare themselves for a price hike on Wednesday. The Ministry of Finance announced today that the pump price of premium gasoline will increase by thirty-five cents from $11.76 to $12.11 per gallon. The prices for regular gasoline, kerosene and diesel will remain unchanged. According to GOB, the price change reflects the current demand and supply conditions of crude […]
On Sunday morning, a gruesome discovery was made in the Belama Phase Four area of Belize City. The decomposing body of a man who, until this afternoon was a John Doe, had been chopped to death and his body bound. Today, investigators are still trying to piece together what triggered the vicious attack on the […]
Police in San Pedro are investigating the curious circumstances surrounding the death of a young mother who was found hanging inside an apartment on Friday evening. Twenty-four-year-old Abrie de Tuyul was discovered motionless several hours after neighbors reported hearing an argument between her and her common-law husband. Tuyul’s daughter was also inside the home in […]
