United Nations

The Ministry of Sustainable Development and Climate Change (MSDCC) successfully launched Belize’s 2024 Voluntary National Review (VNR) at the Ministry’s Auditorium, a synergistic event organized by the Sustainable Development Unit (SDU) in partnership with the United Nations (UN) in Belize.

For the first time in his political career, the Honorable Francis Fonseca addressed the General Debate of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly on Saturday, September 28th, as Belize’s Minister of Foreign Affairs. In his 21-minute speech, Fonseca discussed several topics, including advocating for climate justice and Belize’s ties with other economies like the United States. However, many in Belize were waiting for Fonseca to address the ongoing issues at the Sarstoon River with the Guatemalan Navy. Instead, he referred to Guatemala’s president Bernardo Arevalo's statement on settling the territorial dispute with Belize at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) without highlighting the daily struggles at the southernmost border with that country.

On June 23rd, Belize will observe the United Nations-sanctioned International Public Service Day. There are a series of activities organized nationwide to celebrate the special day. In San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye, the Public Service Day Planning Committee arranged various events, including a church service, health walk, and public service information day. Activities will conclude on Friday, June 21st, with the annual Belize Public Service Awards, held on the island for a second time.

Belize’s Minister of Blue Economy Minister, Honourable Andre Perez, attended the 9th Our Ocean Conference in Athens, Greece, from April 15th through the 17th. At the high-level conference, Belize was highlighted as one of the few countries in the world, and the only one in the Caribbean, to ratify a United Nations (UN) treaty to protect the world’s oceans from overfishing and other human activities. The treaty is officially known as the Ocean Biodiversity Agreement under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. This law emphasizes the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversities in areas beyond national jurisdiction agreements.

A group of 31 soldiers from the Belize Defence Force (BDF) and 20 Belize Coast Guard (BCG) members, along with their commanding officer, BDF Major Ermil Coh, are currently in Jamaica for a month-long training program. The purpose of the training is to prepare them to join a multinational force that will be deployed to Haiti, which is currently experiencing an escalation in violence. The multinational task force comprises troops from various CARICOM member states, intending to support the Haitian National Police Force in restoring security in the country.

Belize has made history by being the first Caribbean nation to officially ratify the groundbreaking ocean biodiversity agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ Agreement).

The Government of Belize and the United Nations held the Third Joint National Steering Committee Meeting for the United Nations Multi-Country Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNMSDCF) 2022-2026, co-chaired by H.E. Amalia Mai, CEO of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, and Mr. Raul Salazar, United Nations Resident Coordinator for Belize.

The Spouses of CARICOM Leaders Action Network (SCLAN), the Office of the Special Envoy for the Development of Families and Children, and the Spotlight Initiative supported Belize’s safe houses with groceries, food hampers and essential household items. The safe houses all received support totalling BZ$56,516.12.