Promoting Sustainable Growth and Digital Transformation in Belize

Through the Sustainable and Inclusive Belize Project, six extension officers were contracted to support the Ministry of Agriculture by providing technical guidance and coordination support to the project activities at the district level.  On Tuesday, the Ministry of Economic Development, in partnership with the Inter-American Development Bank, handed over six motorcycles, desks, chairs and laptops at a value of fifty-one thousand, six hundred and sixty-one dollars to the project.

 

Rocio Medina Bolivar, Group Country Manager, IDB

“This was a very special and very important milestone for the Government of Belize and actually for the whole of Belize.  It was an equipment handing over related to two very important projects that is part of our portfolio and we’re really proud to be partnering with the Government of Belize.  One is related to Sustainable and Inclusive Belize that really focuses on two very important sector, like agriculture and tourism and digital innovation.  Through these two projects, I think we are going to really, in the agriculture sector, for instance, we are going to really impact the farmers, more than two thousand, eight hundred farmers that will be impacted and we are providing equipment that will really help the extension officers at the Ministry of Agriculture and other ministries, for instance, to have access to the logistics that are required and all the equipment also for digital and innovation.  So it’s very important.”

 

Jose Abelardo Mai, Minister of Agriculture

“Agriculture is a verb, it’s in the field.  No extension officer is supposed to be in the office, except when they are writing their reports.  The donation today, the contribution of motorcycles for extension officers is very, very important.  Farmers need all the help that they can get in these very difficult times of climate change and this project focuses around that, mitigating the effects of climate change.  Many of the programs and projects we have now are resilient agriculture .  How do we produce under difficult circumstances, you know, higher temperatures lead to quick infestations of insects.  We have the experience with low pollination when temperatures are very high in corn and so climate change is real.”