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According to S.S.B.’s Chief Executive Officer, Doctor Colin Young, the new pension and contribution scheme will not impact existing pensioners. As it stands now, the fund is approaching the ‘period of equilibrium’ where total expenditures equal total revenue and in order to avoid arriving at that stage, Doctor Young says that there is consideration for […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Does S.S.B. Need a Trigger Mechanism to Keep Fund Afloat?
Attorney General Michael Peyrefitte headed to Guyana today where he is scheduled to participate in a top-level diplomatic conference between CARICOM foreign ministers and Cuban Minister of Foreign Relations, Bruno Rodriguez Parilla. The Sixth Annual CARICOM-Cuba Ministerial Meeting is being held in Georgetown on June fourteenth. Mike Peyrefitte, Attorney General “Well it’s a CARICOM/Cuba […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Belize Attends 6th Annual CARICOM-Cuba Ministerial Meeting
There has been an apparent spike in crimes, especially armed robberies, across the country and fatal shootings, mostly in the Old Capital. While the Ministry of National Security reported a decreased in murders from the period of January to May of this year when compared to the same period last year, there has been an […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on P.U.P. Leader Comments on Crime Situation
There is a level of difficulty when addressing the issue of crime. It is a problem that should be addressed in a multi-faceted, inter-agency approach. According to Briceño, for crime to be successfully tackled, the government needs to focus on reforming the Belize Police Department, strengthening the prosecution branch and reducing the level of poverty. […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on The P.U.P.’s Solution to Crime
Last week, Andre Vega, son of former Deputy Prime Minister Gaspar Vega, appeared in court for a civil trial initiated by the Government of Belize. The government is attempting to recover four hundred thousand dollars which was paid to Vega as land compensation. The land in question is located along mile four of the Philip […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on P.U.P. Leader Says Andre Vega Should Return the $400K
The Leader of the Opposition also took on Minister of Health Pablo Marin over exercise equipment. In May, Minister Marin handed over exercise equipment, which was donated by the Taiwan Embassy, to five municipalities. Valued at around twenty-two thousand U.S. dollars, the equipment was handed over to the Mayors of Punta Gorda, Santa Elena/San Ignacio, […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on A Political Spar over Exercise Equipment
In 2002, the International Labour Organization launched the World Day Against Child Labour to raise awareness on the extent of child labour across the world and the actions and efforts needed to eliminate it. Back in 2017, the Government of Belize partnered with the CLEAR II Project to identify areas where child labour is prevalent […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
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Social Issues |
Comments Off on Eliminating Child Labour in Belize
Tonight, we bring you more of the top twenty-five students in the Primary School Exams. A News Five team visited Orange Walk earlier today and met four of the top five students. Those students are from La Inmaculada Roman Catholic Primary School. This school has consistently produced top performers over the years, including last year’s […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
Education |
Comments Off on Orange Walk’s Brightest in the P.S.E.
You just heard about the bright students in Orange Walk, but there’s also another bright spot in the south. In recent years, Toledo has been producing a handful of the top finishers in the P.S.E. This year, they claimed five spots on the top twenty-five list. Saint Peter Claver Primary took the fourth, fifth and […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Toledo Has Bright Students but Still Lagging behind in P.S.E. Performance
So, how do schools improve moving forward? Longsworth says that it will take a concerted effort to see better grades. He says that an overall improved performance will not come about overnight. One indicator that he believes can guide schools is the Belize Junior Achievement Test. He advocates for the BJAT to be used as […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
Education |
Comments Off on How to Improve P.S.E. Scores
A survey is currently underway within the refugee population in Belize. The survey is being commissioned by the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in partnership with the Belize Red Cross. The purpose of the survey is to collect and study data and use that information in order to assist refugees to better integrate into society […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Red Cross Official Addresses Issue over Delayed Payment
The trial of Corporal Leonard Nunez and Police Constable Hallett King, charged for manslaughter in the death of eighteen-year-old Hilbert Sotz, commenced today in the courtroom of Justice Collin Williams. Both officers were initially charged with murder following the death of the Caye Caulker resident while in police custody. Hilbert Sotz was detained on the […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
Trials |
Comments Off on Manslaughter Case Commences in Death of Hilbert Sotz
Twenty-one-year-old Mark Waight is accused of murder in the shooting death of Amandala reporter Kareem Clarke back in July 2015. Today, he also appeared before Justice Collin Williams where his trial resumed. Last week when the matter commenced, the Crown’s main witness Orlett Bevans failed to show up in court. A bench warrant was subsequently […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
Trials |
Comments Off on Kareem Clarke’s Accused Murderer Has His Day in Court
Twelve Cuban nationals are in police custody after they were arrested early this morning. Just before five o’clock, Orange Walk police were on mobile patrol in San Antonio Village when a suspicious maroon van caught their attention. The van which was travelling at high speed in the direction of Santa Cruz Village was pursued. News […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on OW Police Intercept Vehicle Transporting 12 Cubans
There was a fire on Tuesday morning at Old Belize located at mile five on the George Price Highway. A wooden structure near the entrance of the compound was partially destroyed by the blaze; luckily firefighters were able to extinguish the fire before it could spread to adjacent structures. According to the security guard on […]
Written on June 12, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Fire Destroys Wooden Structure on Old Belize Compound
Cabinet has approved S.S.B.’s proposal to reform its contributions and pension scheme. The Social Security Board embarked on a countrywide consultation process two years ago to seek support for its proposal. As it stands now, the fund is approaching the ‘period of equilibrium’ where total income equals total expenditure. So in order for the fund […]
Written on June 11, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on S.S.B.’s Contribution Reforms Takes Effect July 1st
So what about S.S.B.’s loans and portfolios? Well according to C.E.O. Doctor Colin Young, S.S.B.’s 2018 audited financials are near completion. Doctor Young says that in 2017, the fund’s rate of return on its investments portfolio was five point five percent. He says that in the last ten years, the rate of return was fewer […]
Written on June 11, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on S.S.B. Loan Portfolio’s Rate of Return is 5.5%
Police have charged twenty-five-year-old Belize City resident Starling Perez for the crime of murder. Perez stands accused of killing forty-eight-year-old Carlos Reyes who was gunned down on March twenty-eighth, while inside his own house in Dangriga Town. Reyes was with thirty-year-old Israel Pimentel of Sarawee village, at his home on Citron Street when they came […]
Written on June 11, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Police Charge 1 Man for Carlos Reyes’ Murder
Oliver Peters, who was charged back in 2014 for the stabbing death of his uncle, has been found not guilty of murder. Forty-seven-year-old Thomas Eugene Ferguson Senior was stabbed once to the chest in December 2013 and was admitted to the K.H.M.H. where he received medical treatment until he succumbed to the injury on February […]
Written on June 11, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Oliver Peters Walks from Murder Charge After Stabbing Uncle in 2013
On Monday afternoon, the results of the Primary School Examinations were released by the Ministry of Education. But are students performing better when compared to previous years? We’ll have a review of the results from the Exam Unit at the ministry, but before we get to that, News Five’s Duane Moody visited with the top […]
Written on June 11, 2019 | Posted in
Education,
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Comments Off on 2019 P.S.E. Top Scorer is from St. Andrews School in Cayo
We also visited a few schools in Belize City today to speak with students who place on the top twenty-five list. As we reported on Monday night, the top performing student in the Belize District who also placed second is Ann Elyse Fleser Perdue of La Isla Bonita Elementary in San Pedro. Joining Perdue on […]
Written on June 11, 2019 | Posted in
Education,
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Comments Off on P.S.E.’s Brightest in Belize City Share How They Did It
The Ministry of Education’s P.S.E. report also details the top performing schools in the country. According to the report, the schools are ranked based on a methodology called the School GPA. This is determined by using the number of students who achieved overall grades of A through E and multiplying those numbers by a factor […]
Written on June 11, 2019 | Posted in
Education,
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Comments Off on Top Ranked Schools in Belize City Share Their Tips for Academic Success
And while those top performing students are celebrating their results, many others not so much. The needle of improvement has not budged over the last ten years of the Primary School Examination. The overall result of the exam has not changed, despite there being minor improvements in some sections of some of the tests. The […]
Written on June 11, 2019 | Posted in
Education |
Comments Off on Small Victories in P.S.E. Results, but not Much has Changed
An investigation following the death of eight-week-old Thevane Banner has been concluded by the Ministry of Health. The newborn died from battered child syndrome and his father, twenty-eight-year-old Troy Banner, has since been arrested and charged with manslaughter. Despite a subsequent arraignment, Director of Health Services, Doctor Marvin Manzanero reveals that the Ministry of Health […]
Written on June 11, 2019 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Ministry of Health Concludes Investigation into Death of Baby Thevane
The near-fatal attack on Matron Augustina Elijio last Tuesday at the Port Loyola Health Center has prompted the Ministry of Health to revisit existing procedures for patients accessing services at public facilities. While there are already protocols in place, a recent incident during which the retired nurse was stabbed multiple times by a mental patient […]
Written on June 11, 2019 | Posted in
Health,
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Comments Off on DHS Weighs in on Protocols Following Stabbing of Retired Nurse Elijio
