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AFC backs Ambassador Rodrigues-Birkett for UN Secretary General

Just three hours after Guyanese President Irfaan Ali formally put forward Ambassador Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett as the country’s candidate for the next United Nations Secretary-General, the nation’s opposition Alliance For Change (AFC) has thrown its full weight behind the government’s decision.

In an official statement released hours after the nomination announcement on 12 June 2026, the AFC praised Rodrigues-Birkett as an outstanding Guyanese diplomat whose decades of public service, proven professionalism, and longstanding dedication to multilateral cooperation make her uniquely suited for the UN’s top leadership role. “The AFC is proud to endorse her candidacy and wishes her every success in this historic endeavour,” the statement read.

The opposition party has also called on the Guyanese government to move quickly to rally international backing for the nomination, urging immediate outreach to blocs and partners including the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the Commonwealth, the Organization of American States, the Non-Aligned Movement, and other global stakeholders to build broad cross-regional support.

At 52, Rodrigues-Birkett brings a wealth of high-level diplomatic and international experience to the candidacy. She served as Guyana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation from 2008 to 2015, before taking on a senior leadership role as a Director at the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. In 2022, she was appointed Guyana’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, and she currently leads the country’s 2024-2025 term as a member of the UN Security Council. She also previously served as President of the 65th Session of the UN General Assembly, a role that put her consensus-building skills across diverse nations on full display.

The AFC emphasized that Rodrigues-Birkett holds all the core attributes required to steer the UN through a period of unprecedented global strain. “Ambassador Rodrigues-Birkett possesses the experience, diplomatic acumen, integrity, and global perspective required to lead the world’s foremost multilateral institution during a period of unprecedented international challenges,” the statement noted, adding that her decades of work across public service, diplomacy, and global affairs have already earned her widespread respect across the Caribbean, Latin America, and the broader international community.

The party also highlighted Rodrigues-Birkett’s longstanding commitment to foundational global principles: international law, peaceful resolution of cross-border disputes, sustainable development, and the greater inclusion of small states in global decision-making. At a moment when the world faces overlapping crises – from ongoing armed conflicts and accelerating climate change to rising geopolitical division, growing humanitarian need, and mounting challenges to the rules-based international order – the AFC argues the UN needs principled, inclusive, forward-looking leadership, a standard Rodrigues-Birkett meets fully.

Beyond her personal qualifications, the AFC noted that her nomination marks a key milestone for both Guyana and small developing nations globally. Her candidacy not only reflects Guyana’s expanding role in global diplomacy, it also creates a critical opportunity to center the perspectives and lived experiences of small developing states at the highest levels of global governance. The party expressed confidence that under her leadership, the United Nations would emerge better equipped to advance shared goals of peace, security, sustainable development, and cross-national cooperation.

Rodrigues-Birkett becomes the fifth official candidate in the race to succeed outgoing Secretary-General António Guterres, whose second term concludes on 31 December 2026. She joins a growing field of contenders that includes four previously announced nominees: Rafael Mariano Grossi of Argentina, nominated in November 2025; Rebeca Grynspan Mayufis of Costa Rica, nominated in March 2026; Macky Sall of Senegal, nominated by Burundi that same month; and Michelle Bachelet Jeria of Chile, whose nomination was backed by Brazil, Chile, and Mexico before Chile withdrew its sponsorship in late March.

13 6 月, 2026
Politic : Validation of the recovery and development plan (2025-2030) for the Great North

On June 13, 2026, the Haitian government formally approved the Medium-Term Recovery and Development Plan for the country’s Great North region, a strategic roadmap spanning 2025 to 2030, during a national videoconference hosted under the patronage of Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé. The cross-sector gathering drew more than 120 stakeholders, including representatives from national public agencies, local governing bodies, the private business community, domestic civil society organizations, and international technical and financial partners (TFPs) backing the initiative.

In his opening address to attendees, Marc-Kenley Mogene, Chief of Staff for Haiti’s Ministry of Economy and Finance, outlined the plan’s core mission: to drive accelerated economic transformation across the Great North by rolling out large-scale structuring investments, generating thousands of new formal jobs, and boosting the region’s overall competitiveness to attract additional outside investment. Mogene stressed that successful execution of the plan depends on three non-negotiable foundational conditions: mobilizing sufficient domestic and international financing to fund planned projects, strengthening collaborative alignment between all public and private sector stakeholders, and leveraging the central coordinating role of the Northern Corridor Development Council, which will oversee implementation tracking, cross-initiative alignment, and accountability for all activities outlined in the plan.

Prime Minister Fils-Aimé framed the plan’s validation as a landmark milestone for Haiti’s broader national efforts to rebuild the economy and address long-standing territorial development imbalances across the country. He reiterated that the regional planning initiative grows out of a new national development vision centered on leveraging the unique realities, inherent strengths, and untapped potential of each of Haiti’s geographic regions. The prime minister added that the region-first framework, first piloted in the Great North, will be gradually rolled out to other parts of the country, with the Far South slated as the next region to receive a customized development plan, all in service of building more inclusive, sustainable national growth.

Senior public sector officials presented the plan’s four mutually reinforcing strategic pillars that guide all priority actions. First, the plan prioritizes broad economic diversification to reduce the Great North’s dependence on a small set of vulnerable industries. Second, it targets transformative infrastructure upgrades and private sector revitalization to build a resilient productive base that supports long-term expansion. Third, it commits to large-scale investments in human capital and expanded access to essential public services to widen economic opportunity and advance social inclusion for marginalized communities. Fourth, it includes targeted reforms to strengthen regional governance, rebuild public trust in state institutions, and ensure long-term accountability for results.

The plan was developed over months of collaborative work under the leadership of Haiti’s Ministry of Economy and Finance, in close coordination with national sectoral ministries, and with technical and financial support from key international partners including the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the World Bank, the European Union, and the United Nations system operating in Haiti. It now serves as the official strategic framework guiding all public and private investments, policy reforms, and priority development actions focused on the Great North for the next six years.

Following the formal validation, representatives of international technical and financial partners, local government leaders, and private sector executives all expressed broad support for the initiative, and reaffirmed their ongoing commitment to working alongside the Haitian government to turn the plan’s development vision into tangible results for residents of the Great North. With the approval process complete, the milestone marks the end of an extensive nationwide consultation process that incorporated input from all affected stakeholder groups, and clears the way for the formal implementation phase, where planned investments, governance reforms, and accountability mechanisms will be put in place to drive lasting, sustainable development across the Great North region.

13 6 月, 2026
PSU Leader Alleges Widespread Procurement Abuse Across Multiple Ministries

A brewing public spending controversy in Belize has escalated far beyond an initial single case of suspicious payments, with the country’s top public service union leader now calling for a full, cross-government investigation into what he calls deeply rooted, systemic corruption in state procurement processes.

The scandal first came to public attention when it was revealed that more than $1.7 million in public funds had been disbursed to Jenny Mira, sister of Minister of State Oscar Mira, in contracts awarded through the Ministry of National Defense. While ministry officials have defended the awards and insisted all contracted goods and services were delivered as agreed, public scrutiny has refused to die down, and has now expanded to question procurement practices across the entire government.

Speaking in an on-the-record interview with local outlet News Five, Public Service Union (PSU) President Dean Flowers argued that the Mira family contracts are just one visible thread of a much broader pattern of abuse. He pointed to a wide web of ongoing business interests tied to the minister and his extended relatives, with family members holding contracts across multiple sectors: from his sister’s vegetable supply contracts, to brothers’ holdings in air conditioning services and construction, to in-law-led firms winning roadwork projects. Flowers questioned how the minister’s family was able to finance the construction of a private gated community, raising implicit questions about the source of their wealth from public sector contracts.

Francis Usher, Chief Executive Officer of the Ministry of National Defense, pushed back against the allegations, defending the Mira family’s long history as government suppliers. He confirmed the family has provided produce to the Belize Defence Force and Coast Guard dating back to the early 2010s, years before the current administration took office, and emphasized they have been consistent, reliable partners over that time. Usher also rejected claims of payment fraud, stating, “There is nothing that is being paid for that is not being provided,” pushing back against long-running unconfirmed complaints from service members about substandard or insufficient rations.

On the widely noted practice of splitting large invoices into amounts just under the $10,000 threshold that triggers mandatory additional oversight from the Treasury Department and Ministry of Finance, Usher denied that government officials ever instruct suppliers to split contracts to avoid scrutiny. He suggested suppliers independently adopted the practice because it speeds up payment processing, as lower-value contracts do not require multi-layered approval from additional government bodies.

Flowers, however, remains unconvinced by the ministry’s denials. Drawing on his decades of experience working in Belize’s public service, he argued that official records frequently do not align with on-the-ground realities, a pattern well-known to the country’s Auditor General. He pointed to a previous confirmed scandal at the Ministry of Transport, where the government paid for high-end air conditioning units but received cheaper, lower-quality models instead, as an example of the kind of fraud that systemic weak oversight enables.

The PSU president also pushed back against Usher’s claim that all contracted goods have been delivered, questioning how the CEO could personally verify every delivery made across thousands of contracts. He called on Belize’s top independent oversight officials—including Maria Rodriguez, Teresita Miranda, and Maria Arthurs—to launch a full investigation and prove their commitment to protecting public funds and Belizean taxpayers.

Flowers also expanded the scope of accountability beyond elected ministers, arguing that long-tenured public finance officers are often the enablers of these corrupt practices. He claimed that new politicians and CEOs entering government are frequently introduced to end-runs around oversight rules by career public officers, who then allow the practice to be exploited to redirect public funds into private hands. To advance the investigation, the PSU has already filed formal Freedom of Information requests to obtain full procurement records from the Accountant General, Auditor General, and Contractor General. Flowers stressed that the probe must examine not just political leaders, but the public officials who processed the questionable transactions.

The unfolding scandal has sparked growing public demand for transparency and accountability around the management of public funds in Belize, with the outcome of the requested investigation expected to set a major precedent for government oversight reform going forward.

13 6 月, 2026
Tributes Pour In for Dr. Krishna Following Sudden Death

The Medical Association of Antigua and Barbuda Inc. (MAAB) has confirmed the unexpected death of one of the nation’s most beloved long-serving surgical practitioners, Dr. Subbiah Radhakrishnan—known widely to colleagues, patients, and friends as Dr. Krishnan. The announcement was made in an official statement released by MAAB President Dr. Alafea Stevens, shared with the local medical community this week.

At the time of his passing, Dr. Krishnan remained an actively engaged and deeply committed member of Antigua and Barbuda’s healthcare ecosystem. He continued to deliver critical care to patients at the Sir Lester Bird Medical Centre, while also maintaining an active private practice that served residents across the islands.

Widely celebrated for his magnetic personality and unparalleled expertise in the operating room, Dr. Krishnan leaves behind a legacy that extends far beyond his thousands of successful procedures. Colleagues remember his surgical skill as a benchmark for excellence, one that motivated and shaped generations of local medical workers. What truly set him apart, however, was his dedication to lifting up other professionals: he served as a generous mentor and trusted confidant to countless new and established clinicians across the country, always willing to share his knowledge and experience to help others grow.

On behalf of MAAB’s Executive leadership and its full general membership, President Stevens extended the association’s sincerest condolences to Dr. Krishnan’s family, including his wife Dr. Saravana Sabharmathi and their children. “Our collective thoughts and prayers are with his loved ones, his patients, his professional peers, and the entire medical fraternity as we grieve this extraordinary loss,” the statement read. “May his soul rest in eternal peace.”

13 6 月, 2026
SIF Under Fire: PSU President Claims Rigged Tendering System

A major public accountability controversy has erupted in Belize, with the head of the nation’s largest public sector labor organization leveling serious allegations of systemic corruption against the country’s high-profile Social Investment Fund (SIF). In a blistering public address released June 12, 2026, Public Service Union (PSU) President Dean Flowers has broken with longstanding unofficial norms of restrained public criticism, directly calling out SIF leadership and the Ministry of Finance for running a rigged competitive bidding process that puts political favoritism ahead of value for taxpayer money.

Flowers’ allegations go far beyond isolated claims of mismanagement: he asserts that the entire tendering framework is compromised, arguing that publicly advertised competitive bidding is little more than a facade to award contracts to well-connected bidders rather than the most qualified or cost-effective applicants. To back up his claims, he specifically called out inflated pricing for construction materials, noting that SIF is allegedly paying between $70 and $100 per sack of cement – rates far above standard market pricing that would never be accepted in a truly competitive process.

The PSU president has issued an ultimatum to leadership at both SIF and the Ministry of Finance: hold a public press conference, release five full years of unredacted procurement and tender records, and allow independent public scrutiny of the documents to prove the bidding process is fair. Flowers argues that full transparency is the only possible path to clearing up growing public suspicion and repairing eroded trust in how public funds are managed. He stressed that the controversy is not about a single flawed contract, but about the integrity of the entire public spending system itself, directly calling out Belizean citizens who are aware of alleged misconduct but have failed to speak out, urging them to join demands for accountability.

In an immediate response to the allegations, senior SIF officials issued a sharp rebuttal pushing back against every claim made by Flowers. The agency denied all accusations of favoritism, improper influence, and corrupt bidding, insisting that all procurement processes – particularly for high-value contracts – follow strict, open competitive bidding rules. SIF emphasized that all bidders undergo rigorous vetting across technical, financial, and legal eligibility standards before any contract is awarded. The agency also warned that Flowers’ unsubstantiated allegations carry serious risks, noting they could erode public trust in the institution and damage confidence among SIF’s domestic and international funding and implementation partners. SIF defended its longstanding reputation for sound management, asserting that its existing procurement systems are robust and fully compliant with national public spending rules.

13 6 月, 2026
2026 World Cup : Haitian Prime Minister visited the Grenadiers the day before their opening match

On the eve of one of the most defining matches in Haitian sports history, the country’s top political leadership traveled to Massachusetts to rally the national men’s football team, the Grenadiers, ahead of their opening 2026 FIFA World Cup fixture against Scotland’s Tartan Team. Kickoff for the match, held at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, just outside Boston, is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. local Haiti and U.S. Eastern time on June 13, 2026.

Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé led the official delegation, which included Foreign Minister Raina Forbin and Minister for Haitians Living Abroad Kathia Verdier, for the morale-building visit with players and technical staff on Friday, June 12. The encounter was steeped in raw emotion and collective national pride, as Fils-Aimé delivered a unifying message of solidarity from both the Haitian government and the entire Haitian community — including millions of citizens and diaspora members around the globe.

The Prime Minister framed the team’s World Cup qualification as a watershed historic moment for the Caribbean nation, noting that the run to the tournament has already united Haitians across divides behind a shared national goal. He positioned the Grenadiers as far more than just a group of athletes, calling them a powerful symbol of hope, unity, and what the country can achieve against steep odds.

“You are much more than a football team. You are the face of Haitian youth who refuse to give up, who dare to dream, and who prove that, despite the difficulties, Haiti is capable of rising to the ranks of the world’s best nations,” Fils-Aimé told the squad. “You are hope, you are opportunity. You are an example; we are watching you and counting on you.”

Speaking after the Prime Minister, Foreign Minister Forbin extended her own congratulations to the team for achieving the unprecedented feat of qualifying for the World Cup. She highlighted the behind-the-scenes diplomatic and consular work that cleared logistical hurdles to enable Haiti’s participation in the global tournament, adding that the squad serves as a powerful showcase of the exceptional talent nurtured among Haitian youth.

For her part, Minister Verdier praised the team’s achievement as one that transcends the boundaries of sport. She noted that the Grenadiers’ journey has already become a source of inspiration for current and future generations of Haitians both at home and abroad.

In a gesture of gratitude for the government’s support, the entire squad presented Fils-Aimé with an official team jersey bearing the signatures of every player. The Haitian government used the occasion to reaffirm its full confidence in the national team, and issued a call to all Haitians, regardless of their location, to rally behind the Grenadiers during this historic milestone.

Closing his remarks, the Prime Minister emphasized the unifying power of the team’s moment on the world stage: “Together, as our Grenadiers are demonstrating today on the world stage, we can accomplish great things when we move forward united.”

13 6 月, 2026
PSU President Demands Action on Whistleblower Bill

Amid mounting public scrutiny over questionable public sector spending in Belize, the leader of the nation’s largest public employee organization is intensifying pressure on the ruling government to break a months-long deadlock and advance long-overdue whistleblower protection legislation.

Dean Flowers, president of the Public Service Union (PSU), argues that the most impactful step to curb systemic corruption and abuse of power in government is simple: extend legal protection to public servants who come forward to report wrongdoing. In pointed remarks delivered on June 12, 2026, Flowers noted that hundreds of current public employees have direct knowledge of corrupt practices but choose to remain silent, terrified of professional retaliation, career damage, or other backlash for speaking out.

Belize has waited far too long to implement robust, comprehensive whistleblower legislation that would enable the public exposure of corrupt activity across the public service, Flowers emphasized. He is now calling on the government to immediately end delays and bring the proposed protected disclosure bill to the House of Representatives for a vote.

Flowers directly accused the sitting administration of lacking the political will to meaningfully address corruption. “They have no political will to curb corruption. They have no political will to introduce whistleblowers legislation or protected disclosure legislation to allow and to empower citizens and public officers to point out these things freely and to be compensated if necessary,” he said.

In a direct public challenge, Flowers called out two senior cabinet members—the Minister of Public Service and the Minister of Religious Affairs—accusing them of repeatedly dodging their responsibility to advance the bill. He urged the pair to stop sidestepping the issue, release the legislation from House committee where it has stalled, incorporate recommendations already submitted by the Belize Chamber of Commerce and the nation’s trade unions, and pass the bill in a single sitting.

The passage of this law is particularly urgent right now, Flowers argued, because financial officers across the public service are already facing pressure and backlash tied to ongoing corrupt practices. A strong whistleblower law would give these employees the legal security to report unlawful instructions and corrupt facilitation to the Financial Secretary and Auditor General without fear of retaliation.

Closing his remarks, Flowers tied the call for action to the ministers’ stated values. “If you really believe in a god and you really believe in doing the right thing, do it,” he said. He declined to call out the Prime Minister directly, noting that the Prime Minister’s position on this anti-corruption legislation is already clear to the public.

This report is adapted from a transcript of an evening television news broadcast.

13 6 月, 2026
High Alert Remains After Flooding, Despite Improving Conditions

June 12, 2026 — Two consecutive days of torrential rainfall have left communities across Belize’s Stann Creek Valley submerged, triggered widespread road closures, and left multiple motorists stranded across the district. While the downpour has ceased and floodwaters are now slowly pulling back, the country’s National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO) is keeping its highest level of response activation in place, with emergency teams already deployed across affected areas to survey damage, track shifting river levels, and coordinate relief for displaced and impacted households. National Emergency Coordinator Daniel Mendez is urging local residents to set aside complacency and stay alert as the slow process of recovery gets underway.

Speaking in an official update following the extreme weather event, Mendez confirmed that the disruptive weather system that stalled over the country has lost strength, with a marked drop in accumulated rainfall recorded across most flood-hit zones. “Floodwaters are gradually receding in the affected communities, particularly in the Stann Creek district,” Mendez said. “However, flood alert remains in effect for central and southern coastal areas and in the northern districts as we continue to monitor conditions closely.”

A full list of impacted locations includes Dangriga Town, Sarawui, Silkgrass, Hope Creek, Maya Centre, Mountain View, Mullins River, Steadfast, Pomona, and Valley Community, alongside key stretches of the Hummingbird Highway and the Coastal Road. While the section of the Coastal Road around mile 16 has reopened to limited traffic, ongoing repair work is ongoing in the area, and Mendez stressed that motorists must reduce speed and exercise extreme caution when traveling through the corridor.

NEMO is working in close coordination with the National Met Service and the National Hydrological Service to track real-time changes to weather patterns and river levels across the country. Emergency teams have now moved into the initial phase of response, conducting systematic needs assessments across flood-hit communities ahead of rolling out humanitarian support. Preparations are complete to deliver essential relief items including packaged food rations and potable drinking water to locations where access to basic supplies has been disrupted.

As of the latest update, no emergency shelters have been activated, but multiple pre-vetted facilities remain on standby and ready to open at short notice should flood conditions worsen in any area. Mendez emphasized that public safety remains the top priority for response teams, even as overall conditions improve. “We of course would like to remind the public that although conditions are improving, that we would like you to remain vigilant, as rivers and low-lying areas may still pose risks,” he said. The coordinator repeated a critical safety warning: residents should never attempt to walk or drive through flooded roadways. He also urged the public to only follow official updates issued by NEMO, the National Met Service, the National Hydrological Service, and local municipal authorities.

Local residents of the Stann Creek Valley note that flash flooding of the severity seen on Thursday is an extremely rare event, occurring roughly once every few decades. This report is adapted from a transcript of an evening television news broadcast, with standard spelling used for Kriol language portions of the original broadcast.

13 6 月, 2026
Built to Last, But Can the Coastal Plain Highway Really Handle Floods?

Three years after Belize completed a major upgrade converting the Coastal Plain Highway from gravel to paved infrastructure – a project marketed around cutting-edge climate resilience design – repeated severe flood events have thrown the road’s ability to withstand intensifying extreme weather into sharp question. The most recent heavy rainfall event left portions of the roadway damaged and impassable, prompting public and expert scrutiny of what climate resilience actually means for infrastructure in flood-prone tropical regions. News Five correspondent Paul Lopez reported on the ground from Belize to unpack the ongoing debate.

When the upgraded highway opened, engineering teams prioritized durability from the earliest design phases, given the low-lying coastal corridor’s long-documented high vulnerability to flooding. According to Evondale Moody, Chief Engineer at Belize’s Ministry of Infrastructure Development and Housing (MIDH), the project included major drainage system upgrades explicitly designed to boost the highway’s ability to weather extreme climate events.

Despite these precautions, the highway has already been rendered impassable by floodwaters twice since opening, with each event causing visible damage to sections of the new construction. In the most recent incident, floodwaters stripped away surface layers of the pavement in multiple stretches. Moody clarified that the underlying pavement structure remains intact, noting that only the top wearing course and surface dressing were damaged, and repair teams have moved quickly to restore the affected sections.

The repeated damage has led many to question the promise of “climate-resilient infrastructure” for high-risk regions. Tennielle Hendy, Belize’s Principal Hydrologist, explained that the country’s unique geography makes absolute flood protection impossible. Much of central and southern Belize, including the Coastal Plain Highway corridor, sits on low-gradient terrain downstream from the Maya Mountains, creating ideal conditions for fast-forming flash floods that can hit within one to six hours of heavy rainfall. “We cannot say we will absolutely avoid flooding. We cannot avoid flooding,” Hendy emphasized.

MIDH crews have already begun on-the-ground repair work, and this round of repairs includes a key design adjustment to boost future resilience: crews are pouring concrete for the affected 50-meter stretch, and will extend the concrete section all the way up to the abutment of Soldier Creek Bridge. The goal is to reinforce this flood-prone stretch to better withstand future overtopping from extreme rainfall events.

Even with these upgrades, infrastructure and hydrology experts agree that engineering can only go so far to mitigate the power of nature’s most extreme events. Flash floods carry an unpredictable force, capable of overwhelming even well-designed protective measures. From Hendy’s perspective, the core goal of climate resilience in Belize is not to eliminate flooding entirely – an unachievable goal given the country’s topography and changing climate – but to reduce how long floodwaters cover critical infrastructure, and restore access more quickly after events. “Nature will have its way,” Hendy noted, “but we definitely can reduce retention time, increase runoff speed, even if we can never avoid flooding entirely. Even as teams reinforce the Coastal Plain Highway, experts stress that for flood-prone nations like Belize, resilience measures limit damage but cannot stop extreme weather disasters from impacting infrastructure altogether. This report was filed by Paul Lopez for News Five.

13 6 月, 2026
Belizean Fishers Demand Action with Release of Fisher’s Audit 2025

Even as Belize has built a reputation for robust marine conservation legislation, the nation’s small-scale fishing community is calling for immediate intervention after a groundbreaking new industry audit laid bare deep systemic flaws threatening the future of the trade.

Published in June 2026, the 2025 Fisher’s Audit draws on direct input from working fishers across the country and evaluates the sector against 29 key performance indicators. The report identifies three core, ongoing challenges: inadequate mandatory catch reporting, chronic underfunding for fisheries management bodies, and glacial enforcement of existing conservation rules. The audit confirms that early signs of overfishing are already appearing in Belize’s coastal waters, putting thousands of livelihoods at risk.

At the official launch of the audit, Jorge Aldana, president of the San Pedro Fisherfolk Association, outlined the growing pressures facing an industry that supports thousands of coastal households across Belize. Aldana noted that while incremental progress has been made on some fisher-led demands, the community continues to face overlapping barriers across governance, professional representation, regulatory enforcement, economic opportunity, access to public information, and meaningful participation in policy decisions that shape their work.

“The findings of this audit simply formalize concerns that fishers have been raising for decades,” Aldana said. “Unlike past policy reports that collect dust on policymakers’ desks, all recommendations included in this audit are intentionally practical and achievable. They are not designed to target any single agency or stakeholder group. Instead, they aim to foster cross-sector collaboration between government bodies, fishing cooperatives, civil society, non-governmental organizations, and other key partners with a stake in Belize’s fishing industry. Our ultimate goal is stronger, more equitable fisheries management, improved communication between all stakeholders, and a permanent, amplified seat at the table for the people who depend on these waters for their living.”

Beyond governance and management failures, fishers also highlighted unregulated widespread dredging operations as an immediate, growing threat to marine ecosystems. The practice, they warned, is rapidly destroying critical fish breeding grounds and foundational coastal habitats that sustain healthy fish populations for generations.

This report comes as Belize celebrates 52 years of membership in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), a milestone focused on advancing people-centered opportunity across the region – a framing that adds urgency to fishers’ calls to protect a core sector that supports coastal communities nationwide.

13 6 月, 2026