Government of Belize and the Millennium Challenge Corporation Sign Grant Agreement for Compact Development Funding

The Government of Belize and the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), a U.S. government agency, signed a Compact Development Funding Grant Agreement today.

Prime Minister Hon. John Briceño signed on behalf of the Government of Belize and Jonathan Brooks, Deputy Vice President of Europe, Asia, Pacific, and Latin America, signed for MCC. U.S. Ambassador Michelle Kwan and Ministry of Economic Development CEO Dr. Osmond Martinez also attended the signing ceremony.

The Government of Belize and MCC are working in partnership on the development of an MCC compact. MCC compacts are five-year grant programs that aim to reduce poverty by increasing economic growth. Based on an analysis of the constraints to economic growth, MCC and the Government of Belize agreed to focus compact development on two key constraints to sustainable and inclusive growth in Belize:

• Education: Low quality of education has led to a shortage of trained professionals in all industries.

Cabinet Brief

Belmopan, 2nd March 2023.

The Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Hon. John Briceño, met on 28th February 2023.

o Cabinet discussed at length the global issue of inflation which has increased supply costs and, subsequently, the cost of goods and services locally. Despite government subsidies to the productive and transportation sectors, an increase in the minimum wage, and an employment boom, the cost of living continues to affect all Belizeans. A decision was taken to immediately convene a Cabinet sub-committee chaired by Hon. Jose Abelardo Mai, Minister of Agriculture, Food Security and Enterprise, to (1) explore a short-term framework to alleviate the impacts on those most affected and (2) to explore any and all angles, including legal, to put an end to price gouging.

• Cabinet welcomed the offer from the Joint Unions to assemble a team that will actively assist with monitoring processes in stores to detect instances of price gouging. This is another demonstration of the government’s commitment to working hand-in-hand with the unions for the good of our nation and all our people.

• Cabinet gave its support to a joint undertaking between the Ministry of Health & Wellness and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Science, and Technology, to promote healthy foods in schools in Belize. This is in response to the escalating health issues brought about by the availability of unhealthy food options for schoolchildren and adolescents. This may result in the gradual banning of unhealthy foods and sugar-sweetened beverages in our schools.

• Cabinet gave its approval for a package of amendments to legislation to be introduced at the next sitting of the House of Representatives in connection with the modernization of tax administration with respect to laws regarding anti-money laundering, combatting the financing of terrorism, and proliferation financing in Belize.

• Cabinet gave its approval for government to enter into two loan agreements with the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB). The first is for BZ$10 million to support the rehabilitation of 43.5 miles of rural roads in furtherance of the Resilient Rural Belize Program. The second loan agreement is for BZ$2.4 million to meet additional costs for the Belize Social Investment Fund to cover costs associated with four outstanding community projects, namely, Corazon Creek Technical High School building, Cristo Rey R.C. Pre-Primary and Primary School Construction Sub-Project, the continuation of the Libertad/Concepcion Rural Water System, and the Dorothy Menzies Child Care Center buildings.

• Finally, Cabinet wishes all Belizeans a safe and happy National Heroes and Benefactors Day.

• Electricity: High cost of electricity drives up input costs for all industries.

The Government of Belize submitted two concept papers to MCC that described the strategic approach and general activities that the Government of Belize would like to undertake through a compact program with MCC to address the selected constraints. The objective of the proposed Education Project is to increase the availability of post-primary graduates with the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values relevant to current and anticipated labor market demands by promoting universal access to secondary education, transforming teaching and learning, and reducing skills gaps in

United States Donates Cessna Caravan Aircraft

Ladyville – The Government of the United States donated a Cessna Caravan 208 aircraft to the Ministry of National Defence and Border Security at a handover ceremony today at the Williamson Hanger Complex in Ladyville. The aircraft was donated by U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) through the United States Foreign Military Financing program.

The handover ceremony included remarks from Prime Minister John Briceño, U.S. Ambassador Michelle Kwan, Minister of National Defence and Border Security Hon. Florencio Marin, and Brigadier General Azariel Lo- key growth industries. serving Belize since 1957 as the longest continuous newspaper.

The objective of the proposed Electricity Project is to decrease the wholesale cost of electricity and ultimately the retail tariff by improving governance capacity; supporting Belize to implement its utility-scale renewable energy expansion plans; and enabling the government, businesses, and households to make investments in distributed generation and improve energy-efficient practices. The Compact Development Funds will be used to assist Belize in further developing a compact and will support project definition, project development (data collection, activity design, and feasibility studies), and administrative costs. As the compact is still in development, the total compact funding amount has not yet been determined.

The Government of Belize has established a project development unit— the Belize Compact Development Team—under the Ministry of Economic Development to work with MCC on developing the compact. The goal is to develop a high-quality, evidence-based, and sustainable program aimed at addressing the education and electricity constraints in an inclusive manner that drives growth and reduces poverty.

Founder: Rt. Hon. George Cadle Price, People’s United Party Leader Emeritus