| Bottleneck Of Guat Students At The Border, Fonseca Says It's A Question Of Efficiency |
| Thu, January 16, 2025 |
| On Monday, you saw the lines of Guatemalan students who were held up on the Belize side of the border due to immigration issues. These students attend school in Belize - a practice that’s been happening for decades... |
San Carlos Carrots
On Monday, you saw the lines of Guatemalan students who were held up on the Belize side of the border due to immigration issues. These students attend school in Belize - a practice that's been happening for decades. But have the number of students been multiplying rapidly - too fast for even the border officials to keep up? The Minister of Education says there's always been a steady stream of Guatemalan students and that the ministry is trying to work out the issues at the border.
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Education
"I don't think there is more. I think there have been a couple of bottlenecks recently. But there's always been a steady flow of Guatemalan students who come into our education system mainly to learn English. And we have always, as a matter of policy for the government of Belize, regardless of which administration, we've always welcome them and we've treated them with dignity and respect. So, you know, anytime these issues arise, yes, we try to address them, we engage with the immigration authorities to try to work out whatever bottlenecks exist. So, yes, we are engaged on that issue and whatever issues have arisen, we are trying to address them."
"Belize has a lot has a longstanding policy of engaging with our neighbors. We have been a welcoming society, as you all know, we welcome citizens from all over Central America to our country. So, you know, in terms of Guatemalans, you know, primary schools, as you know, there are very, very minimal fees. They pay those fees when they have to go to school. For the most part, primary education in Belize is free. So, you know, that policy remains in place and we welcome, these are young students, young people who want to learn English and participate in the education system in Belize. And we don't want to deny any young person an opportunity to an education."
There are currently 913 primary and high school students from Guatemala who cross the border daily to attend primary and high school in Belize.
When they were regularized in 2017 with the introduction of student cards, it was just under 400 students. Before Christmas, it was under 900.
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