On July 15, 2026, two leading conservation organizations in Belize have reinforced their shared commitment to preserving the country’s ecologically critical protected lands and waters through a new three-year strategic partnership. The Protected Areas Conservation Trust (PACT) and the Association of Protected Areas Management Organisations (APAMO) have signed an updated agreement that formalizes their collaborative work to elevate conservation outcomes across Belize’s network of protected spaces.
Under the terms of the new deal, PACT will continue to provide sustained financial backing to APAMO, with a core focus on boosting the latter’s organizational capacity and expanding outreach to the community-based and non-governmental groups that serve as co-managers for the majority of Belize’s protected areas. These local co-managing groups play an indispensable role in on-the-ground conservation, making targeted investment in their operations a key pillar of the new agreement.
The partnership identifies five clear priority areas to guide its work over the next three years. These priorities include enhancing institutional governance structures for collaborative management, upgrading the overall quality of protected areas administration and conservation practices, developing diversified funding streams for long-term conservation work, expanding public education and advocacy campaigns to build broader community support for protection efforts, and securing APAMO’s long-term financial stability as an organization.
In the first year of implementation, the two organizations will prioritize foundational work to set the partnership up for success. Key early activities include strengthening internal governance and daily operations at APAMO, developing a comprehensive sustainable financing strategy for the organization, expanding technical and administrative support services through the APAMO Central Resource Centre, and ramping up public engagement initiatives to raise awareness of the importance of protected areas conservation.
Notably, this new three-year agreement dovetails with a recent Memorandum of Understanding signed between APAMO and Belize’s National Biodiversity Office. The alignment of the two agreements creates a unified framework that advances national-scale biodiversity conservation goals and improves the overall effectiveness of Belize’s entire National Protected Areas System, bringing together institutional funding, organizational expertise, and government coordination to protect the country’s unique natural heritage.