A suspected drug plane, smaller than the aircraft that landed on the Southern Highway several weeks ago, arrived in Stann Creek District last night and seemed to have successfully discharged its illicit cargo before being consumed by fire. A team of officers was dispatched to an area near Santa Cruz Village where they came across […]
It happens over and over again: women are killed at the hands of their current or former spouses. But men have been killed too in domestic incidents. And so have children—young ones and teens –caught in the crossfire of parental disputes. Today those tasked with trying to eliminate the deaths, the beatings and even emotional […]
American Thanksgiving usually marks the unofficial start of the tourist high season which runs through January. This year, tourism stakeholders are beginning to see their bookings go up. But protecting that revenue stream means there has to be collaboration to minimize COVID numbers. And that ever sensitive issue that also has a bearing on our […]
Teachers are exempted from the December fifteenth vaccination mandate for public officers imposed by the Government of Belize. While teachers fall under the public sector, they are not classified as public officers. So, come December fifteenth when public officers will be mandated to show proof of vaccination, teachers will be spared. Minister of Education Francis […]
On Wednesday the Government of Belize met with social partners to review the country’s economic performance. The Joint Union Negotiating Team has requested a separate meeting and reports are that the Joint Unions are saying it’s time for their members to get back that ten percent that was cut at the onset of the 2021/2022 […]
That meeting with the Government of Belize and the Joint Unions Negotiating Team has been proposed until December eighth. But, how reasonable is the expectation of a return to full salary for public servants and teachers? Minister Fonseca commented. Francis Fonseca, Minister of Education “I think we have come a long way in one […]
In Cabinet news this week, the Minister of Labor and Local will review of the Labour Act, including new pandemic regulations. The ministry will also plan for the gradual implementation of a five-dollar minimum wage. The Ministry of Agriculture will look at the rising cost of living and introduce legislation at the next sitting of […]
Zero hunger is United Nations Sustainable Development Goals number two. Belizean Parliamentarians are leading the charge towards realizing this goal in Belize. The group, known as the Belize Parliamentary Alliance against Hunger and Malnutrition, or Parliamentary Champions, met at the House of Culture in Belize City today. Their mission is to introduce the Alliance song, […]
Ek Balam, the reigning champions of Poktapok, the ancient ball game revived in the Americas, is heading to Mexico. The tournament, which they won in 2017 and again in 2019, begins this year on December first. Belize’s team needs a bit more financial support to get them from Yo Creek to Merida. They are hoping […]
The recent Investment Summit was a success, at least from the level of interest that it drew from the more than two hundred participants. Minister of State in Finance, Chris Coye, shared with News Five today that there has been continuous exchange and interest shown, but that in due course, tangible arrangements should follow. […]
Minister Coye believes Belize has not been maximizing the ability to market our goods and services closer to home and that we ought to double our efforts toward that end. Chris Coye, Minister of State, Finance “We have not been focusing for export in our neighbouring countries and when we look at the size […]
There is a vacuum being left in the wake of Doctor Deysi Mendez’s sudden departure as Chief Executive Officer at the Ministry of Health and Wellness. Her stint as C.E.O. comes to an end on Friday and the Briceño administration will have to name a successor in the days ahead. But there are also several […]
This afternoon, the Port of Belize Limited gave a significant contribution towards the Aspire for Greatness Christmas Tablet and Toy Drive by handing over a check for four thousand dollars. The financial assistance will go a long way towards purchasing the tablets at a lower cost in the United States. Hertha Gentle, Human Resources […]
Despite limited resources, Belizeans are preparing to spend yet another Christmas holiday during the COVID-19 pandemic. It comes with economic challenges, but also spending that family-oriented festivity without that loved one who has lost his or her battle with the virus. The way we traditionally celebrated Christmas has changed and the quarantine regulations and safety […]
This afternoon, police formally arrested and charged Brian Castillo for the double murder of his common-law-wife and step daughter, which occurred on Sunday. Castillo had been on the run for three days, but was captured on Tuesday in Peten, Guatemala before he was handed over to Belizean authorities overnight. News Five’s Duane Moody reports on […]
First Doctor Manza and now C.E.O. Doctor Deysi Mendez. Today, word spread like wildfire that Doctor Mendez is no longer with the Ministry of Health and Wellness. Last week, we had reported that there may have been some head bucking within the leadership of the ministry. Today that seems to have ended with Mendez being […]
Shawn Steven Hertular, a construction worker of a Belize City address, has been arrested and charged for the crime of murder. He stands accused of the stabbing death of Miguel Zaiden who was fatally wounded on Racecourse Street Sunday night. Zaiden was in the neighborhood with several other persons when an argument ensued. During that […]
Canadian Jasmine Hartin is still awaiting trial for the shooting death of Police Superintendent Henry Jemmott, as well as for cocaine possession and common assault. But her name has surfaced again. This time in connection with a young man who died on Sunday. Police found twenty-six-year-old Joel Young dead in the Bahia area of Caye […]
The next sugar crop is set to commence on December twentieth, but ASR/BSI is still at odds with the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association. This is over an existing cane purchase agreement which the representative body of cane farmers in the north argues should be terminated. While three other cane farmers associations are in agreement […]
BSI’s Chief Financial Officer Shawn Chavarria explains the benefits that farmers are enjoying from the manufacture and sale of direct consumption sugars to the external market. Shawn Chavarria, Chief Financial Officer, BSI “Farmers are already seeing as well the benefits of that investment, the increased production of direct consumption sugar. We’ve highlighted to them […]
According to the C.F.O., approximately half the total population of sugar cane farmers in the north is in favor of a long-term cane purchase agreement. Shawn Chavarria, Chief Financial Officer, BSI “We have fifty percent of the cane farmers signing up for a long-term agreement. I think they see the benefits of continuing with […]
Today at the Radisson, a meeting was held between those in the public sector and the non-governmental organizations who work with children. It’s part of the Children’s Agenda launched back in 2017, which looks at the goods and services provided to children that coincide with their basic rights. So what is the state of children […]
2021 has not been a good year for children. So far, ten minors have been killed as a result of violence; the most recent was Sunday night’s murder of twelve-year-old Nitzia Catzim in San Ignacio. A ten-month-old baby also lost his life as a result of a road traffic accident on Monday afternoon. These incidents […]
Over the weekend, on Saturday, a children’s parliament spoke to just that – a bill was presented that called for the protection of young people from violent crimes. Those who rose to support the bill spoke to the factors that contribute to gang membership at an early age and the need for intervention at the […]
The nine months of 2021 looked far better than the same period in 2020, according to statisticians who collected data on the country’s economy, employment and inflation rates, and external trade. Today the data was presented to the media and Marion Ali was present and filed the following report. Marion Ali, Reporting The cost […]
