Government

On Thursday, March 24th, during the sitting of the House of Representatives, Deputy Prime Minister Honourable Cordel Hyde announced that as of July 1st, the minimum wage would increase from $3.30 to $5 per hour. Belizeans welcome this increase when the cost of living rises due to inflation caused by factors such as elevated fuel prices.

The Ministry of Finance announces that effective today, March 24, 2022, the regulated pump price of regular gasoline is now prescribed at $13.50, representing an increase of 66 cents compared to the last shipment Belize received. Not only is this increase entirely attributable to the acquisition costs of the product but in order for the price to be kept at this level, the Government reduced all levies on regular fuel by 29 cents.

Defense and public-security planners from the Caribbean, Central America, North America, and Europe will meet March 21-25, 2022, in Belmopan to discuss final planning details for Tradewinds 2022, an annual, multi-national and multi-domain exercise. This week’s meeting is the third and final planning conference in preparation for the exercise.

A delegation from the U.S. government’s Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) led by Chief Executive Officer Alice Albright departed Belize on March 17th after a productive visit to introduce the agency’s development grant program – an MCC compact.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Enterprise and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), through the Development of Agricultural Cooperatives and the Improvement of its Management Capacity Project, handed over four 40-foot cold storage units to vegetable cooperative producers in Indian Creek, Orange Walk on March 16, 2022.

Although the San Pedro Town Council (SPTC) is yet to provide a financial report, as promised, Mayor Gualberto ‘Wally’ Nuñez says his administration is managing well and the island’s economy is recovering.

The Government of Belize through a competitive bidding process under the project Supporting Electronic Payment Solutions received and evaluated bids from the Belize Bank, National Bank of Belize, Heritage Bank Limited, Speednet (Smart), and Digi. Based on final evaluations, the E-kyash powered by Belize Bank was selected as the first electronic payment solution to pilot online payment for the processing of Temporary Work Permit applications within the Labour Department’s Temporary Employment Permit system (https://tep.mlgrd.gov.bz). This collaboration aims to provide Belizeans with a safe and secure means of payments that can be rapidly dispersed across multiple channels and introduce significant efficiencies to investors and local entrepreneurs.

The World Bank's Board of Executive Directors has approved financing of US$25 million for the Belize Climate Resilient and Sustainable Agriculture Project, which will aim to increase food production capacity and the adoption of climate-smart agricultural approaches among project beneficiaries. The project will provide over 7,000 farmers with weather data and technical information to help improve yields for crops and livestock and facilitate better planning.