Belize’s ongoing transition to electric mobility has hit a landmark milestone, with the official opening of the country’s first dedicated Electric Vehicle Laboratory at the Orange Walk Institute of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (ITVET). Built to address a critical gap in the nation’s EV ecosystem, the new facility will develop a skilled local workforce capable of servicing the growing fleet of electric passenger and public transit vehicles across the country.
Fifteen local trainees have already completed an intensive two-day introductory training course at the lab, with full formal programming set to launch this coming September. The upcoming curriculum will cover core EV industry skills, ranging from advanced diagnostics and routine maintenance to complex repair work for all types of electric vehicles.
The $95,000 facility, stocked with specialized industry-grade equipment, was made possible through funding from the European Union, with implementation led by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Michael Lund, Deputy Resident Representative for the UNDP, explained that the training lab marks the final component of a broader national electric transit pilot project that has already delivered tangible results across Belize. “This project has delivered city buses for Belize City, new inter-district electric buses, installed a network of public charging stations, supported the development of updated EV-related legislation… and now it completes the ecosystem with workforce training,” Lund noted.
For many prospective EV buyers in Belize, a persistent barrier to adoption has been uncertainty around access to qualified repair and maintenance services. Neil Hall, E-Transit Coordinator for the Belize City Council, emphasized that the new lab directly resolves this top consumer concern. “The biggest question on people’s minds when considering an electric vehicle is always, ‘If something breaks, who will fix it?’ This facility completely eliminates that worry,” Hall said.
Prior to the lab’s opening, all EV servicing across Belize was almost exclusively handled by a single private provider, Caribbean Motors, leaving much of the country underserved for maintenance support. The new training initiative aims to spread specialized EV expertise to communities across every district, creating a decentralized, accessible support network that can accommodate projected growth in EV ownership over the coming years.