Belize

territorial sea:

• 12 nm in the north, 3 nm in the south;
• note - from the mouth of the Sarstoon River to Ranguana Cay, Belize's territorial sea is 3 nm;
• according to Belize's Maritime Areas Act, 1992, the purpose of this limitation is to provide a framework for negotiating a definitive agreement on territorial differences with Guatemala

exclusive economic zone:

200 nm

• tropical;
• very hot and humid;
• rainy season (May to November);
• dry season (February to May)

• approximately 25% to 30% of the population lives in the former capital, Belize City;
• over half of the overall population is rural;
• population density is slightly higher in the north and east

noun:

Belizean(s)

adjective:

Belizean

• English 62.9% (official), Spanish 56.6%, Creole 44.6%, Maya 10.5%, German 3.2%, Garifuna 2.9%, other 1.8%, unknown 0.3%, none 0.2% (cannot speak);
• note - shares sum to more than 100% because some respondents gave more than one answer on the census (2010 est.)

major-language sample(s):

The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information. (English); La Libreta Informativa del Mundo, la fuente indispensable de información básica. (Spanish)

• approximately 25% to 30% of the population lives in the former capital, Belize City;
• over half of the overall population is rural;
• population density is slightly higher in the north and east

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.07 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

0.95 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.98 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.94 male(s)/female

total population:

1 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

• deforestation;
• water pollution, including pollution of Belize's Barrier Reef System, from sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff;
• inability to properly dispose of solid waste

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified:

none of the selected agreements

particulate matter emissions:

21.23 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions:

0.57 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions:

0.55 megatons (2020 est.)

• tropical;
• very hot and humid;
• rainy season (May to November);
• dry season (February to May)

urban population:

46.2% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization:

2.3% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

municipal:

11.4 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

industrial:

21.2 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

agricultural:

68.4 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

conventional long form:

none

conventional short form:

Belize

former:

British Honduras

etymology:

may be named for the Belize River, whose name possibly derives from the Maya word "belix," meaning "muddy-watered"

name:

Belmopan

geographic coordinates:

17 15 N, 88 46 W

time difference:

UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• the decision to move the capital of the country inland to higher and more stable land was made in the 1960s;
• the name chosen for the new city was formed from the union of two words: "Belize," the name of the longest river in the country, and "Mopan," one of the rivers in the area of the new capital that empties into the Belize River

history:

previous 1954, 1963 (preindependence); latest signed and entered into force 21 September 1981

amendments:

• proposed and adopted by two-thirds majority vote of the National Assembly House of Representatives except for amendments relating to rights and freedoms, changes to the Assembly, and to elections and judiciary matters, which require at least three-quarters majority vote of the House;
• both types of amendments require assent of the governor general;
• amended several times, last in 2017

citizenship by birth:

yes

citizenship by descent only:

yes

dual citizenship recognized:

yes

residency requirement for naturalization:

5 years

chief of state:

Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Froyla TZALAM (since 27 May 2021)

head of government:

Prime Minister Juan Antonio BRICENO (since 12 November 2020); Deputy Prime Minister Cordel HYDE (since 16 November 2020)

cabinet:

Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister from among members of the National Assembly

elections/appointments:

• the monarchy is hereditary;
• governor general appointed by the monarch;
• following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the governor general;
• prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister

highest courts:

• Supreme Court of Judicature (consists of the Court of Appeal with the court president and 3 justices, and the Supreme Court with the chief justice and 10 justices);
• note - in 2010, Belize acceded to the Caribbean Court of Justice as the final court of appeal, replacing that of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London

judge selection and term of office:

• Court of Appeal president and justices appointed by the governor-general upon advice of the prime minister after consultation with the National Assembly opposition leader;
• justices' tenures vary by terms of appointment;
• Supreme Court chief justice appointed by the governor-general upon the advice of the prime minister and the National Assembly opposition leader;
• other judges appointed by the governor-general upon the advice of the Judicial and Legal Services Section of the Public Services Commission and with the concurrence of the prime minister after consultation with the National Assembly opposition leader;
• judges can be appointed beyond age 65 but must retire by age 75;
• in 2013, the Supreme Court chief justice overturned a constitutional amendment that had restricted Court of Appeal judge appointments to as short as 1 year

subordinate courts:

Magistrates' Courts; Family Court

• Belize Progressive Party or BPP [Patrick ROGERS] (formed in 2015 from a merger of the People's National Party, elements of the Vision Inspired by the People, and other smaller political groups)
• People's United Party or PUP [Johnny BRICENO]
• United Democratic Party or UDP [Dean Oliver BARROW]
• Vision Inspired by the People or VIP [Hubert ENRIQUEZ]

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant); Charge d’Affaires Leyla MOSES-ONES(since August 2021)

embassy:

Floral Park Road, Belmopan, Cayo

mailing address:

3050 Belmopan Place, Washington DC 20521-3050

telephone:

(501) 822-4011

FAX:

(501) 822-4012

email address and website:

[email protected]; https://bz.usembassy.gov/

• royal blue with a narrow red stripe along the top and the bottom edges;
• centered is a large white disk bearing the coat of arms;
• the coat of arms features a shield flanked by two workers in front of a mahogany tree with the related motto SUB UMBRA FLOREO (I Flourish in the Shade) on a scroll at the bottom, all encircled by a green garland of 50 mahogany leaves;
• the colors are those of the two main political parties: blue for the PUP and red for the UDP;
• various elements of the coat of arms - the figures, the tools, the mahogany tree, and the garland of leaves - recall the logging industry that led to British settlement of Belize

note: Belize's flag is the only national flag that depicts human beings; two British overseas territories, Montserrat and the British Virgin Islands, also depict humans

name:

Land of the Free

lyrics/music:

Samuel Alfred HAYNES/Selwyn Walford YOUNG

note: adopted 1981; as a Commonwealth country, in addition to the national anthem, "God Save the Queen" serves as the royal anthem (see United Kingdom)

agriculture:

10.2%

industry:

18.1%

services:

71.7% (2007 est.)

total:

19.3%

male:

12.7%

female:

28.5% (2019 est.)

lowest 10%:

NA

highest 10%:

NA

• 8 privately owned TV stations;
• multi-channel cable TV provides access to foreign stations;
• about 25 radio stations broadcasting on roughly 50 different frequencies;
• state-run radio was privatized in 1998 (2019)

number of registered air carriers:

2 (2020); inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 28

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

1,297,533 (2018)

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

3.78 million mt-km (2018)

total:

3,281 km (2017)

paved:

601 km (2017)

unpaved:

2,680 km (2017)

total:

813

by type:

bulk carrier 54, container ship 1, general cargo 428, oil tanker 70, other 260 (2021)

• 18 years of age for voluntary military service;
• laws allow for conscription only if volunteers are insufficient;
• conscription has never been implemented;
• volunteers typically outnumber available positions by 3:1;
• initial service obligation 12 years (2021)

• Guatemala persists in its territorial claim to approximately half of Belize, but agrees to the Line of Adjacency to keep Guatemalan squatters out of Belize's forested interior;
• both countries agreed in April 2012 to hold simultaneous referenda, scheduled for 6 October 2013, to decide whether to refer the dispute to the ICJ for binding resolution, but this vote was suspended indefinitely;
• Belize and Mexico are working to solve minor border demarcation discrepancies arising from inaccuracies in the 1898 border treaty

current situation:

• human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims and Belizeans abroad;
• Belizean and foreign women, men, and girls and LGBTI persons, mainly from Central America, are sex trafficked in bars, nightclubs, hotels, and brothels;
• men, women, and children from Central America, Mexico, and Asia may migrate voluntarily to Belize seeking work and then are subjected to forced labor in restaurants, shops, domestic work, and agriculture;
• foreign child sex tourists exploit children in tourist areas

tier rating:

• Tier 2 Watch List — Belize does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so;
• authorities initiated more trafficking investigations, convicted a trafficker, screened for potential trafficking victims during labor inspections, and continued to implement a 2018-2020 national anti-trafficking action plan;
• anti-trafficking training was provided to the anti-trafficking police unit, immigration officers, prosecutors, judges, prison officials, and social workers;
• however, the government did not initiate any new trafficking prosecutions and continued to apply victim identification procedures inconsistently;
• corruption and official complicity in trafficking remained concerns, but no investigations, prosecutions, or convictions of government employees were reported (2020)

• Belize is a transit country for illegal drugs, mainly cocaine, originating from countries in South America;
• low domestic drug consumption problem outside of recreational cannabis