PRESS RELEASE
• Cabinet gave its approval for a programme to improve Labour Force Participation and Employability in Belize, especially for women and youth. This programme aims to improve the services that promote access to the labour force of the general population, while providing specialized support for women and young people, as well as increasing skills supply through relevant and quality-focused training in priority sectors. Such actions will improve the employability of Belizeans by ensuring that training institutions like ITVET are better equipped and better connected to meet labour market demands.
• The Minister of Education, Science, and Technology apprised Cabinet of the situational analysis of the food, health, and nutrition situation in our schools and was given approval for the enactment of the Belize School Food and Nutrition Policy. The policy was developed as a framework to ensure all students have access to nutritious food in schools and to implement regulations and monitoring to shape school environments to support healthy behaviours. Developed in consultation with key stakeholders, this policy also strengthens the delivery of the National Healthy Start Feeding Program, which currently provides meals to over 15,000 students and stands in line with Plan Belize to support Belize’s commitment to education, health, and sustainable development.
• Belize attended its first meeting as a member of the Council of Ministers of Finance of Central America, Panama, and the Dominican Republic (COSEFIN), which was held in Antigua, Guatemala, on the 30th and 31st of July. Belize became a member of COSEFIN in January of this year and, through this organization, will work towards enhancing fiscal policy coordination, supporting regional integration through trade, transport, and energy, as well as encouraging collaboration to reduce trade barriers and invest in cross-border infrastructure.
• Cabinet gave its approval for the Minister with responsibility for Labour to submit to the National Assembly three new Labour Standards that were recently adopted at the International Labour Conference. As a member of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Belize is obligated to submit all newly adopted conventions and recommendations to the National Assembly for legislative approval. These three new conventions address the issue of violence and harassment, safe and healthy working environments, and biological hazards.
• Recognizing the need for a comprehensive review of the Labour Act, Cabinet gave its approval for the Ministry responsible for Labour to conduct, in phases, a comprehensive review of the Labour Act and to work with the Attorney General’s Ministry to prepare the draft legislative amendments to the Act.
• Cabinet also gave its approval for the Minister of Local Government, in accordance with the obligations set out in the ILO Convention, to prepare reports and to work with the Attorney General’s Ministry to prepare the necessary documentation for submission to the ILO.
• Cabinet gave its approval for the Ministry of Health and Wellness to amend the fees for drug registration applications under the Drug Regulations to improve stakeholder participation, support public health objectives, and encourage the use of internationally recognized reliance mechanisms. There are two types of fees for drug registration. The Reliance Pathway fee will be reduced from $500 to $100. This is expected to encourage stakeholders to use the more streamlined process. The full dossier reviews will be increased from $100 to $200 and will better reflect the level of work involved in assessing products that have been reviewed by another recognized national authority. Adjusting the fee structure will result in more efficient regulatory decisions and faster access to safe, effective, and quality-assured medicines for Belizeans.
• Finally, Cabinet reminds all Belizeans to prepare emergency kits and review family plans this hurricane season.
