Opposition Senator Chides Briceño Administration Over Borrowing

The Government of Belize is borrowing a total of twenty-four million U.S. dollars from the Inter-American Development Bank. The matter was debated today by way of two loan motions. The first is for ten million U.S. dollars to be invested in sustainable urban development projects in Orange Walk, Corozal, and Ambergris Caye. The second is for fourteen million dollars meant to improve the efficiency, quality, and access to healthcare across the country. These loans will also come with five million U.S. dollars in grant funding. Michael Peyrefitte, the Lead Opposition Senator argued that the Briceño Administration has borrowed exorbitantly since taking office in 2020.

 

Michael Peyrefitte, Lead Opposition Senator
“Madam President we keep borrowing and borrowing and borrowing.  We keep hearing the Minister of finance say we are doing so well, and the economy is expanding. The economy is expanding at such an alarming rate, but we have to borrow approximately fifty million Belize dollars to do essential services from what I see you are saying you want to do on the paper.  From the life of me I cannot, I don’t want to hear this is practically free money, loan dah loan. And we are up to one point seven billion in under four years. We have come to this National Assembly to borrow one point seven billion with a B with nothing to show for it. That is not counting anything like treasury bill. The government issued a treasury bill note in July to be matured in October for sixty-four million dollars. We are not counting those. This is straight external loans we take on in less than four years, one point seven billion dollars.”