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Belize’s First Trade Policy to Transform Business Sector
posted (November 27, 2018)
The Government of Belize is reporting tonight that the country will have its first national Trade Policy.

It was approved today by the Cabinet, and a government press release says that this policy, which was born out of the July 2016 National Trade Policy Framework, was developed following extensive consultations with stakeholders countrywide. The policy is coordinated by the Director General of Foreign Trade, and it was developed with the technical assistance from the Commonwealth Secretariat.

The Government says that the Trade Policy seeks to achieve 5 main objectives. First, they want to reduce the cost of doing business, enhance competitiveness and develop efficient production of systems and capacities. It should also improve trade performance for goods and services, diversify the production and export basket, and enhance value addition.

Also, the policy seeks to develop and enhance the growth of service trade, and put in place an effective institutional and legal framework. The hope is that the policy will also build and strengthen bilateral, regional, and multilateral trade relations, and to enhance market access for Belize's goods and services. Finally, the policy should build a strong and effective institutional and legal framework for trade development, with an entrepreneurial mindset.

The Government says that although the country has been actively participating in different types of foreign trade, there has never been a comprehensive and coherent policy in place. Previous trade was achieved through what the Government calls, quote, "a number of fragmented policy instruments which left room for improved efficiency", End quote.

The Director General for Foreign Trade is currently working on finalization and then implementation, in preparation for a public launch early next year.

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