On March sixth, Kaya Cattouse was elected, along with ten other P.U.P. candidates, for a third consecutive term at City Hall. But is her attempt at running for a seat in the House of Representatives a disservice to the masses of Belize City voters who cast a ballot in her favor during the last municipal elections? Kaya began by sizing up her political opponent in Albert, before speaking of her plan to transition to central government.
Kaya Cattouse, P.U.P. Candidate, Albert
“Going into a constituency or choosing a constituency, you don’t do this based on the opponent and while she may be a formidable opponent and is a two-time [area representative], I believe that I can come into this constituency with what I bring, the knowledge and the experience working at the local government level and for me it’s about a new drive, a new perspective, you know, wanting to give the people what we see they need and we believe that under a PUP banner, with a PUP minister, we can do this. My main goal is service to the community, service to the residents and I want to do this to the best of my ability and I want to make a commitment and dedicate to the residents whether it be at a local government level, at a municipal level or at the constituency level. So, the bottom line is service to the community, regardless of the level that we’re doing it. Working at the Belize City Council at the municipal level, I have been able to work across ten different constituencies, yes, the results were resoundingly reassuring at the polls both times. However, I believe that there is a transition period that everybody goes through and you come into local government with aspirations to move on to central government.”
Isani Cayetano
“Nonetheless, you would still be shortchanging the residents of Belize City who voted for you for a three-year term. If elections are called in 2025, that’s only one year into the term. They will say, well, look, we voted for the entirety of the term and not necessarily for one-third of it.”
Kaya Cattouse
“Belizeans, or the residents of Belize City will definitely not be shortchanged. We have a well-rounded team at the Belize City Council. Should I be successful at my bid for the Albert constituency, I believe that our city will be left in very capable hands.”
It’s been three months since the first e-bus arrived in Belize and the fanfare that accompanied that arrival has not followed through with the scheduled rollout of the pilot project. Since then, a second e-bus has arrived in country. The Belize City Council will oversee two buses running city routes and, prior to the municipal elections, was planning those routes, as well as a media tour. But there’s been no finalization of that plan and the forty-seven-passenger maximum capacity buses are still parked today. This morning, News Five asked the Minister of Transport, Rodwell Ferguson for an update on the e-buses. He said that the Belize City operations will begin shortly, and that more e-buses will arrive for the long-awaited western and northern routes.
Rodwell Ferguson
Rodwell Ferguson, Minister of Transport
“Operations will start early in June. As a matter of fact, I’m having a management meeting tomorrow to decide exactly what date. Operation will start in Belize City in particular. It will be a special route for the E-buses to run in Belize City, and then hopefully by July, August, three more will come in to run on the Northern Highway and likewise on the Western Highway. That is the beginning of E-buses in the country of Belize. We are now negotiating with the European Union through the UNDP. Hopefully within a year or two we should get another 46 EV buses to run across the highway. So I’m quite sure that this is the beginning, and while we have some buses on the highway that are inadequate, now I have to have a little bit of caution and be conscious of the people because if I put pressure on them to get brand new buses now, then by 2030 the world is going EV. So we’re hopeful that we can facilitate them through grant funding and partial payment by them to be able to participate in this new dimension.”
Reporter
“What do you know about customers being able to reserve seats on the bus? Is this allowed?
Rodwell Ferguson
“I know Floralia has a system in place, I think James also has a system in place, and hopefully, once the ministry gets its ticketing system, then customers will be able to reserve seats across the country, and buses, when the bus come, they’ll have your seat for you.”
In early February, the Government of Belize ordered a suspension of the dredging operations being conducted at Angelfish Caye by the company Angelfish Caye LLC. The island, popularly known as the Will Bauer Flats, is located off the coast of Placencia. This suspension order came because of the protest made by the fly fishermen on the island who say that that their livelihood depends on being able to catch bonefish in that area. However, recently, the suspension was lifted, once again, sparking outrage from the fly-fishing community. Area representative Rodwell Ferguson, of Stann Creek West, was asked what is being done about the situation. Here is his response.
Rodwell Ferguson
Rodwell Ferguson, Area Representative, Stann Creek West
“I don’t even know who is Angel Fish, I think, the name of the organization. And again, the Fishermen, because I’m the area rep, contacted me about two or three years ago and said we are not satisfied with the dredging of the area because they have filled up a shovel with material right from the seabed, which is a fly fishing area. It came up in cabinet yesterday, and I think cabinet will have to enforce and give a notice to the Department of Environment to put a hold into this thing until we can satisfy that what they are doing is the right thing. And the fly fishers are appreciative and accept what they want to accomplish. What was suggested that they can maybe move their material from a further distance to that location if they want to fill to do some development Because at the same time we cannot stop development.”
As of May first, the Ministry of Health and Wellness officially made the switch from Belize Telemedia Limited to Smart. This switch will result in a change of the existing phone numbers used by various departments in the public health sector. When asked, Minister of Health and Wellness, Kevin Bernard, said that the switch from the public to the privately-owned company came down to saving the ministry’s money. Here’s what he had to say.
Kevin Bernard
Kevin Bernard, Minister of Health & Wellness
“Over a year and a half, we had asked both companies to submit proposals to the Ministry. One in terms of looking at cost-cutting measures that we needed to do. And so both companies had provided their bids to us. When the review was done, we saw where in the case of Smart we would have been, we would be saving quite a significant amount of money in terms of the service that they provide and the accessibility to the equipment that they are providing. So, It is in that context that we made the proposal to the Ministry of Finance gone through its necessary processes I think we were starting at the main headquarters and then see if we could expand that out. However, we are not completely going away from BTL, we are still utilizing some of the main lines that BTL offers, but we are trying to ensure that we could cut on the telephone bills at the ministry and that was a decision we made.”
Twelve years ago, one non-profit organization began working on a project to rehabilitate the population of a critically endangered animal in Belize. Today, the Belize Foundation for Research and Environmental Education, BFREE, is leading the charge across the region to prevent the Central American River Turtle or hicatee from going extinct. Culturally, hicatees are hunted by Belizeans for their meat. But studies have shown that overhunting has pushed the species to the brink of extinction. BFREE has established the only hicatee captive breeding facility in the region, and it has proven to be a huge success. News Five’s Paul Lopez travelled south to Toledo District to find out more about their work. He filed the following report.
Paul Lopez, Reporting
Did you know that it is illegal to buy or sell the Central American river turtle or hicatees in Belize? Also, a single person can have up to three hicatees, and any female caught must be between fifteen to seventeen inches in size. Hunting this much-sought-after species can only be done outside of the monthlong closed season in May. Hicatees have only been found in three countries, Mexico, Belize and Guatemala. In Belize, it is a traditional delicacy that is highly sought after, especially in rural communities.
Yamira Novelo Fuentes
Yamira Novelo Fuentes, WCS
“Belize is really the only country out of the three that allows legal hunting and consumption of the species. It is critically endangered and that is some of the things people don’t understand or think about when they are doing their hunting practice or consumption.”
Over hunting has led to a significant decline in the hicatee population within Belize. One non-governmental organization has been working to replenish the hicatee population for the past decade. The staff at the Belize Foundation for Research and Environmental Education or BFREE, located next to the Bladden Nature Reserve, are referred to as hicatee heros. Jacob Marlin, the Executive Director of BFREE. An expedition into the Bladden Nature Reserve, thirty years ago, was the inspiration behind the establishment of the organization.
Jacob Marlin
Jacob Marlin, Executive Director, BFREE
“We documented quite a lot and saw this was a completely pristine tropicalrainforest that had been completely unexplored and unstudied.”
Since 1995, BFREE has facilitated hundreds of research papers and publications in collaboration with Belizean and foreign students. Of all the current and past conservation projects that BFREE has worked on, its Central American River Turtle or Hicatee Captive Breeding Project is perhaps the most groundbreaking. BFREE has the only hicatee captive breeding facility in the world. Thomas Pop has been managing the project for the past ten years. Barney Hall, a Wildlife Fellow at BFREE, has been working alongside Pop for the past two years.
Thomas Pop
Thomas Pop, Manager, Hicatee Conservation Research Center
“These turtles are very difficult to work with and as you can see here, we don’t have a natural habitat for them but I am trying to make this pond their natural habitat so these turtles can feel comfortable in this area.”
Jacob Marlin
“Hicatee is very secretive. They spend all their time underwater. They don’t come up on the beaches to lay eggs. They don’t come up to bask. It is a fully aquatic specie, more like a fish and they are very hard to study in the wild.”
The International Union for Conservation of Nature placed hicatees on its red list as critically endangered or facing an extremely high risk of extinction. Studies have shown that the turtle has been virtually eliminated from much of its habitat in southern Mexico. Its status in Guatemala remains unclear and several studies in Belize have shown that the numbers have significantly decreased over the years. These are the only three countries where hicatees can be found. BFREE is on a mission, through its research project, to breed and rewild hicatees in Belize.
Barney Hall
Barney Hall, Wildlife Fellow, BFREE
“We target areas where the species once was, and we try to augment those populations by reintroducing these hicatees back into the wild. But before that we need to have veterinarians come in. They have to test blood, parasites, feces, we don’t want any introduced pathogens back into the wild.”
At the facility, the hicatees are separated in three different ponds based on their developmental stage. Studies show that it takes a hicatee up to sixteen years to reach the breeding stage. Even more interesting, hicatee eggs go through a process called embryonic diapause which is a temporary pause in an embryo’s development. Essentially, hicatee eggs take up to six months to hatch. To date, BFREE has rewilded more than five hundred turtles with another three hundred eligible for release this year.
Barney Hall
“We have teams like the Savannah Field Station, they are constantly outfield, setting nets, trying to get a population assessment and they have been recapturing some of our turtles and we are seeing that they have been doing very good in the wild. So that is a very good sign.”
The Wildlife Conservation Society has also been studying the Central American river turtle. For the past three years, they have been doing so in the Maya Forest Corridor in central Belize. According to Yamira Novelo Fuentes, legislative reform is necessary for greater protection.
Yamira Novelo Fuentes
“I think when it comes to legislation and updating and amendment, I think you do need to take into consideration the community and what they want. Because we can put enforcement and legislation, but if you don’t have that community buy-in and that community who wants to be part of it then you wont be able to have compliance. And you want your communities to be stewards of their resources more than anything else.”
BFREE has fully embraced the community component of its conservation efforts. Through research on hicatees, the organization has developed several resources that are distributed in primary and high schools across the country. The Adventures of Herbet the Hicatee is one such book. BFREE also organizes presentations with various groups to spread awareness about the critically endangered specie and what communities can do to make Belize a haven for hicatees. BFREE also recognizes October as hicatee awareness month, a practice that began eight years ago. Heather Barrett is the Deputy Director at BFREE.
Heather Barrett, Deputy Director, BFREE
“One of the material we have and we like to use is this one, which just says take the hicatee promise, it is essentially saying I promise to be a hicatee hero and care about the species. I would say like there is, I do think there is hope and I do think the children are buying into this idea that our wildlife in Belize, it is critical toprotect it and it is for us, all of us to take a little action whatever it is.”
The Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital is strategizing ways to further improve its services to the public. Tuesday at the cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister John Briceño, K.H.M.H. C.E.O. Chandra Cansino made a presentation in which she provided an update on the status of the institution and discussed ways to enhance and improve service to Belizeans. The areas the hospital is looking to further develop include oncology, cardiology, and other specialized services. Cansino stressed that as both a regional hospital and the nation’s only public tertiary hospital, it is necessary that that standard of care be ever improving. In recent months, the K.H.M.H. has made multiple renovations to the facilities and received donations of medical supplies and equipment as a part of this mission.
The Placencia Polyclinic is finally open for business, and it is a welcome change for residents of the peninsula who, for years, have had to travel elsewhere to receive emergency medical attention. The clinic was built through the efforts of the Belize Tourism Board and the Ministry of Health and Wellness. The Government of Belize recognized the need to provide better healthcare services to residents of Stann Creek District. It also ensured that one of the country’s most popular tourist destinations is now equipped with the necessary facilities to encourage longer stays. News Five’s Britney Gordon was on hand for the opening ceremony has that story.
Britney Gordon, Reporting
For many years, residents of Placencia have had to journey by boat or land to receive emergency medical care in Independence Village. That inconvenience is now a thing of the past, as the Placencia Polyclinic was finally inaugurated this morning. Minister of Health and Wellness, Kevin Bernard, told us about the culmination of this project.
Kevin Bernard
Kevin Bernard, Minister of Heath & Wellness
“This initiative started ever since we got elected. Minister Ferguson had reached out to Minister Mahler and quickly to the Ministry of Tourism and BTB support, we were able to get this facility going. You will understand, as well, that a lot of the medical equipment was also contributed to the foundation, the Heineman Foundation and we also got some of the contribution from the recent donation that we got from Mister and Misses Lord that was handed over at that ceremony at KHMH. So some of the beds and so forth was also placed here. So it’s a joint effort.”
Construction of the clinic was made possible through a partnership between the BTB and the Ministry of Health and Wellness. Minister of Tourism, Anthony Mahler said that upgrades to various resources across Belize is an integral part of developing the tourism sector.
Anthony Mahler
Anthony Mahler, Minister of Tourism
“If you really look into the infrastructure needed to support the tourism industry, health is one of them. Electricity is another, water, security, road infrastructure, all of those things. All of those things play an important role in making a premier destination available to people from all across the world and within Belize. And when we look at the growth rate happening On the Placencia peninsula and there was no polyclinic or hospital facility to the level that we think it should be. Then we partnered with a Norwegian from out of Harvester to build this facility here.”
Approximately three million dollars was invested in the clinic and there are plans for future expansion. According to Bernard, the clinic is still waiting for additional equipment to be delivered.
Kevin Bernard
“I can guarantee you that within no time this facility will have everything fully functional. As notice there’s an x ray room. We don’t have a radiologist here. We’re working on trying to get radiologists. That’s a big area where we need, where we’re seeing in terms of the health gaps, where we need more radiologists in the country. And so in finding people who are willing to come to the, to these areas to work is what we are faced with. But however, we are working very hard to do we are making sure that at least the major service, the main services that needs to be offered at the facility is be able to offer it. But as in terms of your question, in terms of making sure equipments, the equipments and medical equipments are available, we already identify what equipment’s are to be here. And those are the ones that we have earmarked to come this way.”
The clinic offers an array of services, including maternity and childcare, an asthma bay and a pharmacy. An ambulance was also donated to the clinic. In the event of an emergency, the clinic is also equipped with a generator and water reserves. Stann Creek West representative, Rodwell Ferguson, said that this clinic was long overdue.
Rodwell Ferguson
Rodwell Ferguson, Area Representative, Stann Creek West
“This is a milestone for the entire Pacific Peninsula because it’s a major tourist destination. And then even likewise the locals, it have maybe about maybe three thousand to five thousand people in the peninsula all together and when there is a major health issue, the closest place is Independence. If you don’t have a boat, you can’t go across the lagoon. You have to drive all the way around to reach Independence or Dangriga. So this by itself might save lives. I’m hopeful that within the next six months, staff this building to be able to satisfy the need of the people of the percentage of peninsula, including person that’s in Placencia, Seine Bight, and Riversdale.”
In order to match the service provided by the Independence Polyclinic, this facility plans to offer twenty-four seven medical care. Minister Bernard told us that housing is currently in the works for doctors and nurses.
Kevin Bernard
“We know that one of the major challenge that have always been in terms of the doctors having a doctor’s station in, in Placencia Peninsula. Was always a critical issue. And so we are working on that as well to see if we could get the previous facility renovated so we could house the doctors there, that way doctors can be here available twenty-four seven. Of course, this will be a twenty-four hour facility and provide continuous service, emergency service, routine checkups other specialized care when the doctor come in.”
The fate of the University Hospital is still undecided as cabinet deliberates where the building will be constructed. Last year, the Government of Belize signed a forty-five-million-dollar loan to build a hospital that would be operated by the University of Belize. However, the key stakeholders are not in agreement on where it should go. We asked the Minister of Health and Wellness, Kevin Bernard, about the progress of the deliberations. Here is his response.
Kevin Bernard, Minister of Health & Wellness
“As we have right now we had made a decision to revisit the location where we wanted to take the hospital initially. The land that we were air marking when the study was done, when the feasibility was done, they’re suggesting that you know what we needed to be close, one, to the airship because it will have a helipad. You need to be, you need to have access to the airship. If anything, you need to have a closer vicinity to the polyclinic that exists in the development facility area. And at the same time, the road access. We were looking at that. And It was taken to Cabinet. Cabinet said for us to go back to Ministry of Natural Resources, identify the proper adequate land in those areas. So the Ministry have been able to identify the land. So now it’s now where we have written back to the Office of the Prime Minister to say that we have identified these lands and this is where we were recommending. So we are at that stage. When we get that finalized, then you should be able to see the project kicking off hopefully by the end of this year.”
The roles public healthcare plays in tourism are not being overlooked by the Belize Tourism Board, nor the ministry of Tourism. That is the message shared by the members of the tourism sector as they bolster their efforts to enhance the quality of service provide to Belizean citizens and visitors. Today, at the inauguration of the Placencia Polyclinic, which was built through the efforts of the B.T.B. and the Ministry of Health and Wellness, we asked Minister of Tourism Anthony Mahler what other areas the ministry is planning to work on next. Here’s his response.
Britney Gordon
“Are there any other areas that the BTB is looking to specifically target in regards to health care?”
Anthony Mahler, Minster of Tourism
“Actually, we’ve been having discussions with the area reps from Cayo district to see if we can partner in building surgery facility and operating room because they don’t have one in the western regional hospital or whatever it is called. But we’re looking at that and other projects.”
Vega’s Distributors Limited handed over the equivalent of four thousand dollars in cash and products to the Belize Red Cross. Fifteen days away from the start of the hurricane season, the Belize Red Cross is gathering resources for its 2024 disaster relief efforts. Today, they received several boxes of bug sprays and two thousand dollars cash from Vega’s Distributors Limited. We were at the handing over ceremony this morning, where we heard more about how these resources will be put into use.
Osborn Collins
Osborn Collins, Sales and Marketing Manager, Vegas Distributors
“Over the years the Red Cross has been synonymous with service to the community, especially in time of disaster. In reviewing the list of donors recipients, the Belize Red Cross stood out because of the many years of Service. The McBride Caribbean Limited whose headquarters is in Barbados and the factory of BOP insect spray, at Vega Distributors we have the BOP original, however all the BOP products can be found in all supermarkets across Belize. On behalf of the management of Vegas Distributors as the official distributors in Belize. WE are handing over these nineteen cases of BOP products valued about two thousand dollars along with two thousand dollars in cash to the Belize Red Cross.”
Monica Herredia
Monica Herredia, Volunteer Manager, Belize Red Cross
“This donation comes in handy because it is the start of our preparation for Hurricane season and we really, we want to have everything in place. We have started procurement and getting everything in place for the hurricane season. Of course, we don’t want to have a hurricane come to Belize but we have to be prepared. So, this donation means a lot in terms of prepared in case there is a dengue outbreak in Belize.”
