The Challenge With “Building Back Better” In the Caribbean

During the negotiation period of the Sendai Framework the “Build Back Better” concept was introduced as a post-disaster response towards creating more resilient nations and societies. It is considered to be one of the most important concepts in the framework, and touches issues pertaining to the restoration of physical infrastructure, revitalization of livelihood and economy, […]

Preparation in Full Swing for the U-19 National Volleyball Men Team

The NORCECA U-nineteen male Continental Volleyball Championship takes place in just about a week and a half, from March thirteenth to the eighteenth, in Guatemala. The twelve athletes have been selected and will travel with the coaching delegation, an international referee and team manager on March eleventh. News Five caught up with the team as […]

Belize Volleyball Makes History, Again! This Time in Beach Volleyball

Last week, we reported on the U-nineteen male national volleyball team and the U-twenty-one national female volleyball team making history when they were selected to compete at a higher level of the sport at the Continental Volleyball Championships. Well tonight, we can report that Belize Volleyball Association is making history once again, this time in […]

U.S. Government Donates CESSNA Aircraft to B.D.F.

This afternoon at the Williamson Hangar in Ladyville, U.S. Ambassador Michelle Kwan handed over a single-engine CESSNA aircraft to the Government of Belize for use by the Belize Defense Force Air Wing.  The plane which has been retrofitted for aerial reconnaissance of Belize’s terrestrial domain.  The keys to the airplane were handed over to Prime […]

P.M. Briceño Says G.O.B. will Remain Out of Stake Bank/Portico Issue

The Briceño administration remains on the sideline, observing keenly the ongoing dispute between Portico Enterprises Limited and Stake Bank Enterprises Limited, over the purported existence of a Definitive Agreement that was granted to the Port of Magical Belize under the previous government.  We have been reporting on recent developments between both entities involving their respective […]

P.M. Says Unions Set the Timeline for Implementing Pension Reform

Coupled with the unfreezing of increments is the discussion and implementation of pension reform.  Last Friday, the National Trade Union Congress of Belize came out in support of its sister unions on a number of issues related to the return of increment.  On the matter of pension reform, the umbrella organization€ chided the government for […]

Martin Marshalleck Is Appointed New K.H.M.H Board Chairman

Two weeks ago, the sudden removal and temporary replacement of Doctor Andre Sosa as K.H.M.H Board Chairman raised the eyebrows of many who wanted to know whether the abrupt change in leadership was because Sosa had been candid in past remarks where the hospital was concerned. Minister of Health and Wellness, Kevin Bernard told News […]

Is the Chief Magistrate Not Going Out Quietly?

As has been reported, Chief Magistrate Sharon Fraser is retiring this month, after thirty-four and a half years of service in the judiciary. But her transition has been a rocky one, to say the least. Fraser believes that there should be an opportunity for upward mobility for one of the senior magistrates who was being […]

Chief Magistrate Sharon Fraser is Disappointed about Retirement Transition

Chief Magistrate Sharon Fraser says that she is disappointed with her transition to retirement and the entire process.   Sharon Fraser, Chief Magistrate “I am because here we have a situation where having invested youth, time, everything, thirty-four and a half years to the people and the government of Belize, I feel that everything I’ve […]

Sharon Fraser on Transition as A.P.S.S.M. President

Chief Magistrate Sharon Fraser also serves as the president of the Association of Public Service Senior Managers and is one of the lead negotiators in the ongoing dialogue between the Government of Belize and the Joint Union Negotiating Team. With her retirement on the horizon, Fraser speaks about what the transition will look like for […]

12 Former Security Guards File Civil Suit Against Security Oriented Services

Twelve former employees of Security Oriented Services, S.O.S., today filed civil suits against their former boss.  We have reported on instances where the security guards went on go slow or did not show up to work because they claimed that at times they were going weeks without being paid. S.O.S. owner Paul Garcia and supervisor […]

Mayor Says After Re-assessment, Digi Park Parking Meters Could Be Removed

The installation of the parking meters in front of the parking spaces at the Digi Park in Belize City has raised the ire of the public. Some are saying it goes against the order of business for those who vend from the park itself. Others argue that it does not support family-oriented events at the […]

Minister Bernard Debunks Allegation of Grabbing Green Space as Personal Property

And while we were with Minister Bernard, our colleagues posed a question to him about a one-acre parcel of land in Carmelita Village that was purportedly allocated as a green space but that now bears his name as the owner. The minister responded by saying that the report is a political ploy.   Kevin Bernard, […]

Is There Tension Brewing Over Village Boundaries in the South?

Minister of Indigenous People’s Affairs Dolores Balderamos-Garcia has written to the President of the Toledo Alcaldes Association, as well as the Program Manager for the Maya Leaders Alliance in respect of an issue that is being reported by the chairwoman of Barranco Village.  It is also a concern that is being raised by the chairperson […]

G.O.B. Says Recent Compliance Meeting with Maya Representatives was Successful

While speaking with Minister Dolores Balderamos-Garcia earlier today, she provided an update on a recent compliance hearing that was held between the Government of Belize and representatives of the Maya communities in southern Belize.  The compliance hearing is part of a series of activities that were prescribed by the Caribbean Court of Justice in respect […]

Tertiary Level Students Meet with Members of the P.C.C.

Today, at the Jaguar Auditorium at the University of Belize, Belmopan Campus, students from U.B., Galen and other tertiary institutions got an opportunity to attend a presentation by members of the People’s Constitution Commission and its secretariat. The students were able to ask questions and voice their concerns, even make suggestions as it relates to […]

Mid-term Review on Sendai Framework Highlights Communication Challenges

The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 is the single-most important global agreement for the preservation of life and investments in the event of a disaster. But, this is probably the first time you have ever heard any mention of it. And, if you are among the few globally who have an understanding of […]

Early Warning System Shows Great Success in the Caribbean

Multi-hazard early warning systems are playing an integral role in the preservation of lives across the globe, in the event of an impending hazard. For example, when a tropical cyclone is expected to impact Belize, through its early warning system the National Meteorological Service of Belize can make predictions about the storm’s projected path, its […]

CitCo Introduces Student Hub for Less Fortunate Schoolchildren

Less fortunate school children across the Old Capital will be able to receive additional tutoring and access to the digital world through a Youth Connect Student Hub that the Belize City Council opened today at its ground floor at City Hall. Mayor Bernard Wagner admits that this is one of his council’s manifesto pledges that […]

U.S. Government Donates CESSNA Aircraft to B.D.F.

InfoSegura Project Donates Laptops to the Judiciary

Today, at the Senior Courts building on Regent Street in Belize City, the USAID-Funded InfoSegura Project handed over eight laptops to Chief Justice Louise Blenman and Chief Magistrate Sharon Fraser. While it is part of the continued efforts by the U.S. government to support improvements in Belize’s citizen security, the donation to the judiciary will […]

B.W.S. Addresses Water Issues on Placencia Peninsula

Two thousand dollars a day, that’s the cost of trucking potable water from Dangriga and Riversdale to Placencia.  It is a bill that Belize Water Services is currently footing to ensure that there is adequate supply to all consumers on the peninsula heading into Easter. Over the past few days, it has been reported that […]

Happy End To a Missing Principal’s Report

In most cases, when an adult goes missing, the story ends in tragedy for their loved ones.  But in this case, we’re happy to report that a woman who was listed as missing on Monday morning and whose disappearance worried the Hattieville community has returned home safely. The sudden disappearance of Sharlette Jacobs, the Principal […]

Argument Between Security Guards Ends with Charge for Death Threat

A heated exchange of words between a pair of security guards employed at the same workplace has resulted in twenty-eight-year-old Julian Logan being charged with issuing a death threat.  Logan appeared unrepresented before the magistrate court where he was read a single charge.  It is alleged that on February twenty-fifth, Logan verbally endangered the life […]

Prison’s Medical Clinic Draws International Attention

The Belize Central Prison has been selected as one of eight entries in a global competition to present a paper on COVID-19 at an international scientific conference on the work the facility has been at its medical unit, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. There were over a hundred and ninety submissions made, of which only […]