BELMOPAN, Belize – Belize has signed a US$125 million Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) agreement with the United States intended to achieve better outcomes in the country’s secondary education and technical and vocational education training (TVET) sector.
Alice Albright, CEO of the Millennium Challenge Corporation, and Michelle Kwan, US Ambassador to Belize, visited several Belize City secondary schools, following the signing agreement on ThursdayWashington said that the agreement demonstrates its “continued commitment to sustainable economic growth, prosperity and durable democratic institutions in the Western Hemisphere”.
Prime Minister John Briceño signed the agreement with Alice Albright, the chief executive officer of the Millennium Challenge Corporation, and Michelle Kwan, the US Ambassador to Belize.
A government statement said that approximately 80 per cent of the grant funding will be invested to achieve better outcomes in the nation’s secondary education and technical and vocational education training (TVET) sector.
It said the remainder will be focused on reducing the wholesale cost of electricity by boosting Belize’s renewable energy sources, modernizing the electricity grid, and facilitating new solar power purchase agreements with independent power producers.
Following the signing agreement, Albright and Kwan visited several Belize City secondary schools, where they got a chance to interact with students and teachers so as to get a sense of the most significant needs holding Belize’s schoolchildren back from excelling in their education.
In a statement in Washington, US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said this debt-free MCC grant “opens a new chapter in our bilateral partnership and underscores our shared commitment to advancing educational opportunities and sustainable energy sector development.”
Supplemented by US$40.6 million in government of Belize funding, Blinken said the United States and Belize developed these projects jointly “to deliver maximum economic and social benefit to the people of Belize, and to meet the highest standards of quality and transparency.
“This collaborative effort reflects our dedication to fostering the long-term development of Belize and the region. We are excited to see the positive impact this partnership will have on the lives of all Belizeans.”
