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Last week, the environmental community came out swinging at the Department of Environment which granted environmental clearance to David Gegg’s Port Magical. They said that Magical will have negative environmental impact, particularly when taken in context with other proposed cruise ship ports. Among these other projects is the Waterloo Holdings proposal. The plans include onshore […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Economy,
Featured,
People & Places,
Travel |
Comments Off on Lord Ashcroft Explains Waterloo Proposal
Lord Michael Ashcroft also spoke about the current economic crunch that Belize is facing. Ashcroft says that the government is staring down a tough decision, but one that must be made sooner rather than later. He put the challenges in context with the unions’ position on proposed measures to say that there are options to […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Economy,
Featured,
People & Places |
Comments Off on Lord Ashcroft Sounds Off on Economic Issues in Belize. Is the IMF a Solution?
At the end of March, Scotia Bank closed, ending more than fifty years in Belize as signs were taken down after the bank was acquired by Belize Bank Corporation Limited, a subsidiary of Caribbean Investment Holdings Limited. Belize Bank is now the largest commercial bank in Belize. When he appeared on Open Your Eyes this […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Economy,
Featured,
People & Places |
Comments Off on Lord Ashcroft Speaks on Belize Bank-Scotiabank Merger
Can legislation help to tackle corruption in Belize while simultaneously cutting costs? That’s what Lord Michael Ashcroft suggests. He says that a key piece of regulation that protect whistleblowers could encourage an anti-corruption agenda but that legislation should also protect the whistleblowers against retaliatory actions when they report suspected acts of corruption. Here’s how he […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Economy,
Featured,
People & Places |
Comments Off on Can Legislation Help to Curb Corruption?
Ashcroft points out there are other tools and regulations that G.O.B. can adopt to reduce corruption. One of the measures refers to the “Unexplained Wealth Law” or “wealth order” where if probes show that someone’s total wealth exceeds their lawfully obtained wealth, he or she will have to explain how they achieved that wealth. Using […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Economy,
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People & Places |
Comments Off on Lord Ashcroft Says Unexplained Wealth Act is Tool against Corruption
The number of COVID-19 cases reported over the last seven days has almost tripled when compared to the number of confirmed cases reported in the first seven days of April. Between April first and April ninth, a total of thirty-two new cases were reported by the Ministry of Health and Wellness, while eighty-one cases were […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Health |
Comments Off on Belize Entering Third Wave of COVID-19
Public sector nurses are currently operating on a work to rule basis as a sign of solidarity with the joint union’s position on G.O.B.’s proposed wage cuts. The Nurses Association of Belize has also gone on record to say that they are prepared to take industrial action alongside the Unions if it ever comes to […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Health,
People & Places |
Comments Off on Minister Chebat Responds to Nurses and P.S.U.
The Ministry of Health and Wellness has acquired thousands of Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccines from the United Arab Emirates. This donation was not met with the kind of fanfare that was seen during the handing over of previous vaccine donations. And that may be because the Sinopharm vaccine is yet to receive approval from the World […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Health |
Comments Off on Sinopharm Vaccines on Hold
A COVID-19 Vaccination registration app was launched today. Currently, it allows people who fall under phase one, two and three to register online for an appointment to be vaccinated. But at the moment, there are no long lines at clinics giving the vaccines and the process only takes fifteen to twenty minutes for most citizens. […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Health |
Comments Off on M.O.H.W. Launches Vaccine Registration App
Climate change requires urgent action from all countries to build resilience against the phenomenon. Back in 2015, the Government of Belize approved a national climate change policy and established a National Climate Change Office, which has been working on developing partnerships and getting the country the much needed assistance and support to adapt to climate […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Environment |
Comments Off on Mitigating the Impacts of Climate Change
As Doctor Gladden shared with the media the findings of a recent assessment on the effects of climate change, we asked about the impact of COVID-19 as it relates to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change efforts. The Chief Climate Change Officer says that both the pandemic and climate change affect vulnerable populations. Dr. […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Environment |
Comments Off on Climate Change & COVID-19
The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP26, is the twenty-sixth of its kind that is scheduled to be held in the city of Glasgow from November first to the twelfth 2021 under the presidency of the United Kingdom. Negotiating at the conference on behalf of the region, including Belize, is the […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Environment |
Comments Off on Belize Wants to Talk Climate Finance & Technology at COP26 in Glasgow
Today, Herwin Godoy Senior was laid to rest following funeral services at the Wesley Church in Belize City. Godoy Senior drowned on Sunday at the river in Grace Bank and his body was recovered Tuesday morning. One of the men who helped in the search efforts is a lifeguard. Tonight he shares not only the […]
Written on April 21, 2021 | Posted in
Miscellaneous,
People & Places |
Comments Off on Lifeguard Shares Tips on Swimming
The Public Service Union continued its activism today with members picketing various locations across the country, including service stations down south in Stann Creek District. They were joined in some municipalities by the Belize National Teachers Union, with whom they are allied, as part of a multilateral body that has been in discussion with the […]
Written on April 20, 2021 | Posted in
Featured,
Miscellaneous,
People & Places |
Comments Off on P.S.U. Marches on Albert Street at High Noon
On Friday, a letter was sent to the joint unions from the Minister of Public Service where a proposal for a tiered approach to reducing the wages of teachers and public officers was being suggested. In that letter, Minister Henry Charles Usher puts forward the notion that the reductions can be staggered based on income […]
Written on April 20, 2021 | Posted in
Featured,
Miscellaneous,
People & Places |
Comments Off on Joint Unions Rejected Tiered Approach to Salary Reduction
The letter sent to the joint unions on Friday cited sections of the constitution that refer to the Governor General’s involvement in signing into force fixed salaries for those being paid from the public purse. Flowers told News Five the Briceño administration is being unreasonable. Isani Cayetano “Do you find it perhaps disingenuous that […]
Written on April 20, 2021 | Posted in
Featured,
Miscellaneous,
People & Places |
Comments Off on Unions Say Go after the Big Fish, Not Small Workers
In Orange Walk Town, a hand full of public servants marched around the Central Park in the sweltering midday heat. There were no picket signs or anti-corruption placards being waved at that location. Their laps around the Central Park were done with no loud singing or shouts of solidarity. Instead, it was a quiet protest […]
Written on April 20, 2021 | Posted in
Featured,
Miscellaneous,
People & Places |
Comments Off on P.S.U. Orange Walk Protest in Central Park
Flanking the Orange Walk P.S.U. members in Central Park today were members of the Nurses Association of Belize. According to President Darrell Spencer, members feel compelled to protest right now, but he assures the public they are manning their various medical stations. He says nurses have a history of activism in Belize. Darrell Spencer, […]
Written on April 20, 2021 | Posted in
Featured,
Miscellaneous,
People & Places |
Comments Off on Nurses Join P.S.U. Orange Walk Protest
Today, the Police Association called a press conference to address a letter being circulated that addresses the salary cuts and the increment freeze that will also affect police officers. While the document, addressed to the Minister of Home Affairs and copied to the Commissioner of Police, did not carry the official letterhead and signatures of […]
Written on April 20, 2021 | Posted in
Featured,
Miscellaneous,
People & Places |
Comments Off on Police Association Breaks Silence on Salary Cut/Increment Freeze
There are approximately two thousand one hundred police officers who belong to the association. While Hyde did not wish to take a position, the letter speaks to getting assistance from the ministry to offset the cut in salaries. He breaks down the realities facing police officers. Sgt. Jermaine Hyde, Chairman, Police Association “Majority of […]
Written on April 20, 2021 | Posted in
Featured,
Miscellaneous,
People & Places |
Comments Off on An Appeal to the Minister of Home Affairs
This morning the body of thirty-three-year-old Herwin Godoy was recovered from the river, only about a hundred yards away from where he went down on Sunday afternoon. His body was caught in a net placed within the river at the end of the search day on Monday. Just after six o’clock this morning, the family […]
Written on April 20, 2021 | Posted in
Featured,
Miscellaneous,
People & Places |
Comments Off on Body of Herwin Godoy is Recovered from River
Police have destroyed a marijuana plantation in Toledo. On Monday, they carried out an operation in San Pedro Columbia Village where they discovered two hundred mature weed plants, some of which were six feet tall. A search of the area located a thatch shed with processed marijuana. Police destroyed the shed and drugs. No one […]
Written on April 20, 2021 | Posted in
Crime |
Comments Off on Marijuana Plantation Found, Destroyed in the South
The saga involving Commerce Bight, Recological Systems Limited and the company’s investors continues with a response to several allegations that were made last week against R.S.L. and its present owners. On Monday, Managing Director Paul Martin issued a statement refuting a number of claims that were made during a press conference hosted by siblings Abraham […]
Written on April 20, 2021 | Posted in
Miscellaneous,
People & Places |
Comments Off on Commerce Bight Fiasco Continues
As people across the Caribbean monitor the volcanic eruption and evacuations in Saint Vincent, regional companies are assisting victims. This week, personnel from Sagicor donated supplies to the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines National Emergency Management Organization. The donated items included mattresses, folding cots, blankets, face masks, water tanks and coolers. More supplies will be […]
Written on April 20, 2021 | Posted in
Disasters,
Regional / International |
Comments Off on Support for Victims of Volcano in Saint Vincent
A regional online news source is reporting that Norwegian Cruise Line is returning to Belize at the end of the summer. The Norwegian Joy ship will be departing its home port in Montego Bay, Jamaica on August seventh and on its itinerary is a stop at the company’s Harvest Caye port off the Placencia coast […]
Written on April 20, 2021 | Posted in
Regional / International,
Travel |
Comments Off on NCL to Return to Belize this Summer!
