The month-long state of emergency is on its second day and includes a restriction on all out-district travel. With Easter vacation only a week away, plans to visit other parts of the country have since been dashed. With the fourth confirmed case of coronavirus not being classified as an imported instance, stricter measures are being […]
The National Oversight Committee, a multi-agency taskforce chaired by Prime Minister Dean Barrow and Opposition Leader John Briceño, has together agreed that all frontier points and ports of entry must be closed to Belizeans seeking to return to the country. It’s the latest directive given to the respective border agencies and, according to PM Barrow, […]
This afternoon, the Director of Health Services provided more details to the fourth case of the corona virus. Mapping started soon after the results were known involving the San Ignacio area as well as in Belize City where the patient works. Health personnel, who treated patient four at a private facility and then at the […]
One hundred and forty persons have been tested from all over the country for the corona virus. Four are positive: two in san Pedro, one in Belize City and now San Ignacio. It means that the northern and southern parts of the country so are so far without cases. The breakdown shows that fifty percent […]
Thousands have been left jobless in the tourism industry, as well as other sectors, as business comes to a halt. So, in Belize City and the districts, the unemployed persons lined up to collect the promised relief. The programme is called the COVID-19 Unemployment Relief, which will provide one hundred and fifty dollars per family […]
As you heard, today many unemployed Belizeans applied for the COVID-19 unemployment relief from the government. We spoke with General Manager of Corporate and Customer Relations, Chandra Cansino about this first day of applications. She says that the S.S.B.’s records show that approximately seven thousand hard copy forms were distributed at their branch offices across […]
As you know, during the Ask the Experts webcast the panelists field questions from the public. Two of the frequently asked questions today were about the use of masks and the availability of ventilators. The literature on the use of mask has been changing constantly and some organizations have still not fully endorsed the wide […]
Every sector is grappling with the impacts of COVID-19; municipalities are no exception. In Orange Walk, Mayor Kevin Bernard says the town council is adjusting to survive the months ahead as collection of taxes drop and subventions from government are up in the air. Economic activity has ceased, but we found one business in the […]
Orange Walk Mayor Kevin Bernard is pleading to Prime Minister Dean Barrow to afford city and town councils across the district financial relief. Most councils have closed down and only providing services of garbage disposal or market vending. Bernard says that the council’s revenue streams are merely trickling, leaving the council on a financial cliff. […]
As the one-month national curfew goes into effect at eight o’clock tonight, the good news is that there are no new addition cases of COVID-19. The most recent samples carried out by the Ministry of Health, show that the number of cases remains at three, though the next ten days are critical. All three infected […]
Up north in Corozal Town, lines formed at supermarkets and banks as residents conducted last minute shopping, prior to the start of the curfew. But on Wednesday, a few miles away at the northern border and inside the Corozal Free Zone, the area was deserted as businesses shuttered. The slowdown on economic activity is on […]
The economic slowdown is not only affecting central government, but the nine municipalities in the country. While G.O.B. can access international funding, the councils require funding for their recurrent expenses. In Corozal, the council currently employs over a hundred persons. So what happens going forward if the council cannot pay its staff? At his most […]
Earlier you heard that municipalities are facing uncertainty on government subventions. Streams of revenue from traffic and property taxes are drying up and collections have dipped considerably. Under the state of emergency, essential services at the councils are limited to waste disposal and market vending. Minister of National Security, Michael Peyrefitte had this to say […]
An initial donation of five thousand face masks was made by the Belize Chinese Association to the police department, the Ministry of Health, as well as the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital earlier today. All three organizations are on the frontline in the fight against COVID-19. According to President Johnston Ou, the initial contribution serves as […]
According to ComPol Chester Williams, an additional one thousand reusable masks are being acquired through the assistance of a private businessman. Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police “The protection of our officers must always be at the forefront. While we have sworn to perform the duties that we perform, we must still ensure that we […]
It has been thirty-nine years since the last state of emergency of this kind was imposed, but at midnight, a national shutdown will kick in across the country placing restrictions on the movement of persons outside of five in the morning to seven fifty-nine at night when a curfew will be in place. Businesses considered […]
The state of emergency includes a strict curfew from eight p.m. until five a.m. During these hours, only some essential workers will be allowed to be out, but their movement is with limitations. The Commissioner of Police Chester Williams explained this morning how officers will treat these persons who will have to present a pass. […]
As you know, a number of persons are already facing charges for not observing social distancing as is required at this time to contain the spread of COVID-19. To ensure that everyone complies with the measures of the state of emergency, police and the B.D.F. will be on the streets checking those persons moving around […]
Even though all entry points have been closed, Belizeans cannot be left stateless and are allowed to re-enter the country. But because persons returning from countries where the COVID-19 is thriving didn’t fully observe self-isolation, they are now being placed in mandatory quarantine. In Corozal Town, a hotel is under heavy guard to ensure that […]
As you have seen, the B.D.F. is on guard at a hotel up north where a number of persons are on mandatory quarantine. This morning, the commissioner said the police should be kept in the loop by the authorities about persons under quarantine. He acknowledges that though people have a right to privacy, if the […]
Today, the Director of Health Services came down hard on any pharmacy that is selling two medications: hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin. It is reported that a number of persons have been purchasing the two meds, which have been touted in some countries as a cure for COVID-19. The director reminds the public that the two medications […]
The Social Security Board was a representative on today’s ‘Ask the Experts’ live webcast. General Manager of Corporate and Customer Relations Chandra Cansino spoke about social security’s arrangements for the submission of claims. They have made their essential services available online and they are encouraging the public to use this medium. For those who are […]
And for those who may get sick and want to submit their paperwork – well, that those persons don’t have to hurry to do so. Cansino says that they have extended the submission deadline by several months. Here’s how it will work. Chandra Cansino, GM, Corporate & Customer Relations Service, S.S.B. “We have also […]
During the national shutdown there are going to be several other businesses in various sectors that will be ceasing their operations, forcing employees to go jobless during the thirty-day interim. The fate of those workers will be left hanging in the balance as a result of the urgent decision taken by the state. So how […]
At the top of the newscast, Chandra Cansino of the Social Security Board spoke on ways to submit claims and the extension of submission timelines for sickness benefits. Another matter discussed during her appearance on the ‘Ask the Experts’ webcast, was the matter of employers’ contribution payments. Cansino says that they have made arrangements to […]
