Unemployment Down to 2.1%; Poverty Level Down to 22%

Fresh stats from the Statistical Institute of Belize reveal some positive trends: the economy grew, the labor force expanded in September, unemployment dropped, and poverty levels decreased in the third quarter of this year. This overall growth spans all sectors, including agriculture, which had been struggling in previous quarters. The S.I.B. shared detailed figures today, explaining how they calculated the impressive two-point-one percent unemployment rate. News Five’s Marion Ali attended the presentation and filed this report.

 

Marion Ali, Reporting

Belize’s economy saw a solid six-point-six percent growth in the third quarter of 2024, with all sectors, including agriculture, bouncing back after previous struggles. This upbeat news comes from the latest stats by the Statistical Institute of Belize (S.I.B.). Today, the institute broke down the performance of various categories from July to October, comparing them to the same period in 2023. The total value of goods and services produced in the third quarter hit $1.23 billion, which is $75.6 million more than the same period last year. Interestingly, the data also shows zero percent inflation compared to 2023. S.I.B. Director General Diana Castillo explained to reporters how they arrived at these figures.

 

Diana Castillo-Trejo, Director-General, S.I.B.

“Sometimes we have a situation where in a particular municipality or even at the national level you have prices go up, some go down, so without looking in great detail at what might be happening in that particular municipality I can’t really say but it happens from time to time. It doesn’t mean that prices were completely stable. It just means that what went up and what went down offset each other. Ten years ago I would say that inflation was much more stable, but this has to do with a lot of the external shocks and factors that we have been experiencing not just in Belize but globally.”

 

The unemployment rate is now down to two-point-one percent. We asked Castillo to shed some light on this, especially since it seems to contradict what the average person on the street is experiencing.

 

Diana Castillo-Trejo

“ We have a specific definition for who falls within the labor force and who is classified as unemployed. So to be classified as unemployed, a person obviously has to be without work, but they also have to be available to work and looking for work. Now you have persons who are outside of the labor force, so about forty-five percent of the working age population is not at all in the labor force. And so this is where I think people are seeing that there are persons who are not working, they are not engaged in productive activity, and that is where the disconnect between the unemployment rate, which is those persons who are not working but they are looking for work, versus persons who are not engaged in productive activity, but they’re not looking, they’re not available, etc.”

 

On the poverty level index for September, Statistician Christian Orellana said that twenty-two-point one percent of the population was poor.

 

Christian Orellana, Statistician, S.I.B.

“In September 2024, eighty-nine thousand, eight hundred and seventy-four persons among twenty- thousand, five hundred and sixty-two households were considered to be multi-dimensionally poor. We now compare the 2023 N.P.I. results to the 2024 N.P.I. results. A decrease of four-point-three percentage point was observed for the incidents. This is a result of fourteen thousand and seventeen individuals among three thousand, five hundred and thirty-four households coming out of being multidimensional poor. Notably due to a decrease in the share of the poor population that experienced deprivations in areas such as improved sanitation, access to internet, and dependency. When comparing the intensity between both years, it can be observed that the severity of poverty showed very little change.”

 

Statistician, Ronald Orellana shared that for the period from January to October 2024, imports stood at nine-point-two percent higher than in 2023.

 

Ronald Orellana, Statistician, S.I.B.

“ The total domestic imports for the first 10 months of the year amounted two-point-four billion dollars, up nine-point-two percent or two hundred and six million dollars when compared to imports for the first 10 months of 2023. Currently, imports stood at two-point-four billion dollars, which is considerably greater than that of imports before 2020. Let’s look at the top categories that contributed to this overall increase in merchandise imports. It can be observed that machinery and transport equipment recorded a significant rise for the period, from four hundred and ninety-four point four million dollars to  six hundred and fourteen point five million dollars at twenty-four point three percent or one hundred and twenty point one million dollars increase when compared to 2023.”

 

Orellana said exports were up a notch.

 

Ronald Orellana

“ The total for the first 10 months of 2024 amounted to three hundred and sixty-three point five million, representing a modest growth of 0. 6 percent or 2 million compared to the same period in 2023.  Bananas experienced the largest increase climbing from fifty point nine million to seventy-one point three million. Other exports, including cattle and alcoholic beverages, went up by nine point two million for the first 10 months of the year. Similarly, due to favorable prices for orange concentrate, the citrus products increased from 18. 6 million to twenty-six point nine million. These gains were tempered by declines in two major categories. Sugar fell by eighteen point five million, from one hundred and forty-seven million to one hundred twenty-eight point four million on account to the timing of shipments,  exports of animal feed drop sharply decreasing from thirty-one point three million to eleven point five million.”

 

Marion Ali for News Five.