This morning, the Statistical Institute of Belize and the Inter-American Development Bank formally launched the Belize National Statistical System Portal and the S.I.B. website. The initiative comes as part of S.I.B.’s support to strengthen the country’s capacity to produce and use quality official statistics. The introduction of the portal indicates that considerable progress has been […]
The objective of the portal is to standardize and reduce the amount of effort needed to transfer data between organizations, as well as give the general public access to disseminated data that can be used to generate reports and graphs. Dr. Leopold Perriott, Director General, S.I.B. “A National Statistical System can be seen as […]
Forty-six-year-old American tourist Jemma Paybarrah died while out on tour in southern Belize. Police say the tourist was at sea when she drowned. On Friday afternoon around three o’clock, a tour guide reported to police that he had a group of tourist out at sea when they realized Paybarrah was missing. A boater found her […]
G.O.B. is in the process of establishing a policy that specifically addresses the issue of cyber security. A two-day workshop on cyber security was organized by the Ministry of National Security in collaboration with the Public Utilities Commission, the United Kingdom-based Global Partners Digital and the Organization of American States to further enhance a strategy that would streamline the […]
B.T.L.’s tax dilemma is very much a topic of interest, despite the company’s position that it is up to speed with its monthly G.S.T. payments. Since we broke the story of the purported twenty-nine million-dollar debt owed by the telecoms provider in general sales tax, there has been public outcry, including open criticism by the […]
As for his unforeseen notice of departure, Schreiber was also careful in his response, thanking B.T.L.’s board of directors for the chance to turn the company around and steer it in a new direction. His contract of a cool half a million Belize dollars with salaries and perks was just two and a half years […]
Businessman, Alex Chang, through his attorney Brandon Usher of Williams Law Firm, has commenced legal action against eight families. Those eight families, Chang contends, are illegally occupying his one point six-six acres of land situated in Belama Phase Four. As we have been reporting, in January Chang served some thirty families with a notice of […]
According to Usher, the land in question; Parcel 1999, was privately acquired in 1991 and has remained in private hands. The owner, he says, is Lu Tsu-Tieh. In order to amicably settle the dispute, Usher says a contract was shared with the Area Representative for Freetown, Francis Fonseca, for him to take back to the […]
The Welcome Resource Center is an N.G.O. that assists the mentally ill, as well as the homeless population in Belize. The center, which is located in Belize City, offers its participants a hot lunch, shower and a change of clothing. It also engages the participants in programmes throughout the day to keep them occupied in […]
Opposition Leader John Briceño has written to Prime Minister Dean Barrow, requesting the results of the ongoing audit by the Department of General Sales Tax of B.T.L.’s financials. Briceño is also asking the P.M. for a copy of a letter purportedly sent by B.T.L. Chair Nestor Vasquez to Financial Secretary Joseph Waight seeking G.S.T. waiver […]
The Belize Trade and Investment Development Service, with the support from the Regional Center of Promotion for MSME, closed its first Female Entrepreneurship Programme with a graduation ceremony today in Belize City. The goal is to improve and strengthen women’s leadership skills, economic empowerment, and business development skills. The participants represent the spa and wellness, creative […]
On Wednesday, the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development partnered with UNICEF to host a national children’s consultation on disaster risk reduction. The event is part of a bigger initiative that is finding solutions to support children who may be adversely affected by traumatic experiences such as natural and manmade disasters. As a part […]
Today, the United Nations Development Programme, in partnership with the UNDOC, concluded a two-day workshop with municipal leaders. The workshop is part of a strengthening of nation systems for the implementation of the UNCAC. According to U.N.D.P. representative Aldo Garcia, this event seeks to build the capacity and advocate for anti-corruption strategies at municipal levels. […]
Working documents leaked to the media show a fifty million dollars G.S.T. debt reportedly owed by state-owned Belize Telemedia Limited. The documents surfaced last week and it showed that between 2011 and 2017, B.T.L. racked up tens of millions of dollars in taxes. The company has refused the allegation, saying that it continues to be […]
The disclosure of the documents came on the day that the Senate debated and ratified the Tax Administration and Procedure Bill. The bill contains several components ultimately designed to increase government revenue. As part of the new law, companies, managers and financial officers responsible for ensuring that a company keeps up with its taxes, can […]
The new S.S.B. contribution and reform scheme came into effect on Monday. The Social Security Board embarked in a two-year consultation process where the private sector, the Opposition, Cabinet, and other stakeholders were brief on why it was important to reform the scheme. The restructuring will be phased out over three years with incremental changes […]
The United Nations Commission of Human Rights held a short ceremony on Monday for twenty-three asylum seekers who completed the English as a Second Language course. The UNHCR offers asylum seekers the opportunity to take E.S.L. classes in an effort to help them integrate into their new communities. Here’s more in the following story. […]
There has been no further communication from Belize Telemedia Limited since last week. On Wednesday, News Five first reported on leaked documents which purportedly showed that B.T.L. owes the government millions of dollars in backed up general sales tax. In total, the government company is said to owe close to fifty million dollars in taxes […]
Retired British national Phillip Crabtree drowned in Placencia overnight on Thursday. The body of the fifty-eight-year-old was retrieved from the sea sometime before six o’clock on Friday morning and an autopsy conducted on his body confirms that he died from asphyxia due to drowning. While the body was observed with a cut wound over the […]
The new social security contribution and pension rates came into effect today. The number of persons retiring is growing annually, pushing the Social Security Fund closer to the ‘period of equilibrium’ where total income equals total expenditure. In order to avoid a financial crash, a reform was approved where revenue is higher than the cost […]
The incident over the weekend involving homophobic insults hurled at PC Ralph Gillett, along with him being rendered unconscious via a chokehold, has sparked a polarizing debate. Persons like the Special Envoy for Women and Children Kim Simplis Barrow are questioning whether the chokehold was necessary or a clear show of excessive force by the […]
It’s summer and that means that students are being enrolled in summer programmes across the country. For one week, sixty students between the ages of eight and twelve will be housed at the Ladyville Technical High School in the Belize District learning various life skills and disciplines while engaging in sporting activities. It culminates with […]
There is a huge development tonight regarding the top job at Belize Telemedia Limited. And that is that Rochus Schreiber has tendered his resignation as the Chief Executive Officer for B.T.L. Schreiber’s resignation was confirmed through an “employee bulletin” which was issued by B.T.L.’s Human Resources Department. The bulletin states that Schreiber, and we quote […]
Still on B.T.L., records obtained by our newsroom, show that Belize Telemedia Limited owes the Government of Belize tens of millions of dollars in unpaid General Sales Tax. According to Financial Secretary Joseph Waight, the G.S.T. Department is currently conducting an audit of the company’s financial records, but B.T.L.’s Chairman, Nestor Vasquez, vehemently says that […]
Financial Secretary Joseph Waight has admitted that there are problems with regards to the reporting of financial facts by finance officers across government ministries and departments. This has been a complaint that the Auditor General has been making for several years in her annual report. The inadequate performance by finance officers, accounting clerks has resulted […]
