A major public healthcare infrastructure project in Belize’s San Pedro Town is grappling with unforeseen setbacks, pushing completion back more than a year and stretching costs far past the original budget, according to local authorities. But despite the challenges, the project is moving forward, with officials emphasizing the long-term value of the facility for the island community.
Slated to become the second-largest hospital in Belize—only trailing the national Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital in size—the 37,000-square-foot facility is funded by a development grant from Taiwan (Republic of China) and built by Taiwan-based contractor Overseas Engineering Construction Company (OECC), a firm that has previously delivered public works projects including road upgrades in the Sarteneja region of Belize.
Local area representative Andre Perez told reporters that the project has deviated sharply from its initial timeline, which originally targeted completion between December 2025 and January 2026. Today, due to widespread labor shortages across San Pedro’s booming construction sector, the projected opening has been pushed back to early 2027.
“The labour force has been hard to get, and we all know that the construction industry here in San Pedro is booming,” Perez explained, noting that competition for skilled and unskilled construction workers has driven daily wages for the project’s crew far above $100, a expense that was not included in the original budget projections.
Labor shortages are not the only strain on the project’s finances. Global market volatility tied to ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East has sent prices for core construction inputs—including cement, steel, aggregate materials and fuel—soaring far higher than forecasts made when the project was first planned. These combined pressures have already pushed total costs past the original $33 million grant allocation.
Perez pushed back against circulating claims that the project has accumulated a $15 million overrun, calling that estimate exaggerated, and noted that officials have not yet settled on a final updated total cost. Negotiations over additional funding are currently ongoing between the government of Belize and the Taiwanese grant partners, he added.
Rejecting claims that the delays and cost increases represent a failure of project management or contracting, Perez stressed that nearly all headwinds facing the project stem from global and local economic factors outside the control of any involved party. “There’s no failure here,” he said.
Perez reaffirmed that construction never halted and will continue through to full completion, with no plans to scale back the scope of the facility. A visit from Taiwan’s ambassador to Belize to inspect the construction site is scheduled for June 2026, to review progress and discuss ongoing funding arrangements.