November 19, 2007. The Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment of Belize and the Energy and Environment Partnership with Central America (EEP) will organize the 10th Regional Forum on Renewable Energy that will be held on November 20-22, 2007 in Belize. This year's forum is entitles "Renewable Energies in the Sugar Industry in Central America".
150 representatives from Central American regional government, non-government and private sector will attend the Forum and participate in discussions on energy efficiency, renewable energy programmes in Central America, ethanol production, and Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) financial opportunities.
---------------------------------------------
September 14, 2007. MoneyGram International has decided to extend its operations to Belize. MoneyGram is the 2nd biggest money transferring agency in the world that offers payment and financial services since 1940. This agency is going to offer various payment services and products that include money transfers, express payment services, money orders, utility bill payments, etc.
To offer an affordable and convenient money transfer service to its customers, the company chose 3 agents - Belize Bank, Omni Networks and Fultec Systems.
---------------------------------------------
August 8, 2007. According to the announcement made by the Ministry of National Development, the European Commission Delegation in Jamaica has sent the official confirmation that a grant of Euro 11.8 million (BZ$ 32.5 million) will be given to Belize under Envelope "A" of the 10th European Development Fund.
This allocation is a 20% increase from the original allocation stated by the European Commission earlier. The increase in allocation by the European Commission is provided as an incentive to Belize. It was calculated taking into account not only Belize's performance in governance, but also extent and credibility of Belize's commitment to governance reform.
Earlier this year, Belize's recent achievements in improved governance and plans for governance reform to the Commission were submitted to the Ministry of National Development. Belize was granted 20% of the maximum 30% incentive, which was based on this assessment.
Also, the Ministry of National Development announced that the European Commission has approved an additional sum of EUR 600 000 (BZ$ 1.6 million) under Envelope "B" of the 10th European Development Fund.
---------------------------------------------
August 5, 2007. The Belize Trade and Investment Development Service (BELTRAIDE), the main government agency, has announced that Belize's Investor Manual was launched on July 26, 2007 by the Minister of Finance, National Development and Public Service, the Rt. Hon. Prime Minister Said Musa and BELTRAIDE.
Belize's Investor Manual is aimed to attract, inform and assist local and international investors who establish a business in Belize.
---------------------------------------------
July 16, 2007. As far as providing accurate, efficient and trustworthy data on Belize has been one of the crucial objectives of the government of Belize, it needed to launch the Statistical Institute of Belize (SIB). On July 3, the launch of the Statistical Institute of Belize was announced by the Government.
The SIB was launched as autonomous body dealing with collecting, compiling, analysing and disseminating official statistics.
The establishment of an independent statistical institute that should have replaced the Central Statistical Office (CSO) was the process that started in 2004 with the help of UNICEF and DFID and completed in 2007.
Hugh O'Brien, Chief Executive Office in the Ministry of National Development, said that the transition from CSO to SIB was aimed at geting a new model of organizing official statistics research and dissemination.
The SIB will depend on Government aid and resources, however, it will operate as an autonomous body.
---------------------------------------------
July 3, 2007. Belize was visited by Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega. On June 29, 2007, he went directly from Mexico to San Pedro with a view to attend 2 sub-regional summits.
The Nicaraguan government informed that Ortega attended the 30th Summit of Heads of States and Government of the Central American Integration System that discussed the free trade agreement with Europe, security and energy development. Ortega also attended the 9th meeting of the Mechanism of Dialogue and Agreement of Tuxtla, which was also attended by the President of Mexica H.E. Mr. Felipe. This event hosted discussions on Mexico-Central America free trade agreements, energy, migration, and Plan Puebla Panama.
---------------------------------------------
June 20, 2007. The President of the United Mexican States, H.E. Mr. Felipe Calderon Hinojosa has been invited to Belize by Prime Minister of Belize, Right Honorable Said Musa. The Mexican President is planning to visit Belize on June 29-30, 2007.
The visit will coincide with the IX Ordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Tuxtla Mechanism meeting in San Pedro. On June 30, the Mexican President will meet with the Governor General, H.E. Sir Colville Young. He is also planning to meet with Prime Minister Musa and other senior government officials and to discuss bilateral trade, cooperation between both countries, border security, the Belize-Guatemala relations and other issues. During his visit in Belize, President Calderon will meet members of Belize business community and take part in a joint Belize-Mexico press conference.
---------------------------------------------
June 13, 2007. The opening of the newest branch of Scotiabank in Punta Gorda, which will offer a full range of personal and business banking services to residents of Punta Gorda and the surrounding villages of Toledo, has been recently announced.
The modern design of Scotiabank's branch was constructed in line with its other branches all around the world. For customer convenience, the branch in Punta Gorda will offer a full service, 24 hour International ATM machine.
On June 12, manager, Jose Chan and his team welcomed customers in the branch, while a Customer Appreciation Day is planned on June 18, when Scotiabank's 175th anniversary will also be celebrated. As to the official opening ceremony, it will take place on June 19.
"We are eager to serve our friends in Punta Gorda and Toledo district, with the same friendly Scotia service and expert financial advice that other districts have enjoyed for years, " said Jose Chan, Punta Gorda Branch Manager.
Patrick Andrews, Vice-President and Managing Director of Scotiabank Belize Ltd. said that Scotiabank is committed to Belize and is happy to offer its customers the convenience of banking in Punta Gorda. Andrews is confident that Punta Gorda residents will like the superior customer service and first class banking solutions offered by the branch and its team.
---------------------------------------------
April 24, 2007. Belize has signed Cooperation Agreement with Central American Court. The agreement between the Supreme Court of Belize and the Central American Court of Justice has been signed by Chief Justice of Belize, Abdulai Conteh, and the President of the Central American Court of Justice, Dr. Ricardo Acevedo Peralta.
On April 25, the government of Belize announced the purpose of the cooperation agreement, which is to institutionalize inter-jurisdictional relations, to develop juridical integration processes in the region and to cooperate wider. It is important that the signing of this agreement should widen and deepen Belize's integration with Central America.
The signing of the agreement followed a working session that was chaired by the Solicitor General of Belize, Edwin Flowers and the President of the Central American Court of Justice. The signing was attended by members of the Belizean Judiciary.
---------------------------------------------
March 3, 2007. Fitch Ratings has assigned an "A'" rating to Belize Sovereign Investments III Limited Notes (BSI III). Approximately $86 million in 2 tranches of pari passu debt was issued by BSI III with an expected maturity of 2029 from a Cayman Island special purpose vehicle (SPV).
The repayment of the notes are backed by 2 restructured GOB (government of Belize) sovereign obligations as well as by 2 insurance policies by Steadfast Insurance Company. Insurance policy of each GOB obligation directly covers any non-payment by the government.
It is important that the rating assigned to BSI III notes is substantially supported by the financial strength of the insurance provider. However, it is also supported by the default probability of the Belize's government.
When working on the rating, Fitch Ratings take into consideration limitations to the policy's claims-paying probability. Special attention was paid to the policy's conditionality, termination events and claims-paying process. These aspects deserved special attention from Fitch as far as they could serve as reasons for delays to timely debt service payments.
---------------------------------------------
March 2, 2007. Belize has announced the closure of its debt exchange and has informed the public that 96.8% acceptance was generated by the response from eligible claimants.
Belize debt exchange offer took place in December 2006 when, following 4 months of intensive consultations with the creditors, the Government of Belize launched an offer aimed at exchanging outstanding commercial indebtedness in return for new USD bonds to be issued by Belize.
The financial terms of new bonds have been discussed. The main of them are as follows:
a final maturity due in 2029,
equal semi-annual principal amortizations commencing in 2019,
step-up pricing structure,
the initial coupon with annual interest payments set at 4.25% applicable for the first 3 years,
6% for years 4 and 5,
8.5% in year 7.
The new bonds will have a face value of USD 546.8 million and they will actually replace 98.1% of Belize's external debt.
Said Musa, Belize's Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, expects to save USD 301 million in debt servicing costs. and thinks of this operation as of an overwhelming success.
---------------------------------------------
January 19, 2007. Minister of Education and Labour Hon. Francis Fonseca announced at a press conference that the minimum wage for agriculture workers will increase by 25% and for shop assistants and domestics by 33%. The changes were announced on January 17 and will take effect on April 1.
About 16% of the country's labour force, which is more than 15.5 thousand workers, will be affected by the increase.
Reviewing the minimum wages started in Belize in May 2006 following the request by the Ministry of Labor to constitute a Minimum Wages Council in order to make recommendations regarding whether one rate for all categories of workers is needed. The council consisted of 9 members representing both the workers and employees approved by the Labor Unions, Chamber of Commerce and Belize Business Bureau .
Then, on December 29, 2006, Minister Fonseca got the final report from the Wages Council, and on January 8, 2007 presented it to Cabinet, which, in its turn, approved it and accepted the recommendations.
This is the 2nd time the Prime Minister Rt. Hon. Said Musa and the PUP Government have increased the minimum wages for workers as previously they were raised in September 2002.
15/02/07
\The Belize tourism sector has released a report that a recorded overall increase in 2006 was 4.5%.\ In accordance with the World Tourism Organization, year 2007 has all the necessary potential to turn into the 4th year of sustained growth.
February 2, 2007. The Belize tourism sector has released a report that a recorded overall increase in 2006 was 4.5%.
The US represents 61% of the market share (for the US, the increase accounted for 3.2%), the European market had an increase of 2.7%, while the Canadian market - 14.5%.
Year 2006 has exceeded expectations regarding tourism in Belize. This sector is going on to show excellent results to make it a new record year.
In accordance with the World Tourism Organization, year 2007 has all the necessary potential to turn into the 4th year of sustained growth. As tourism is one of the most dynamic economic sectors in Belize, it plays an important role in achieving sustainable development for the country.
---------------------------------------------
