Secretariat TPR |
WT/TPR/S/353/REV.1 |
S-Table-III.10 |
Belize |
2017 |
Measures |
Import licences |
Agriculture, Chemicals, Other |
Relevant information
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Table 3.10 Import licensing
Product
Plants, vegetables organisms, packages, animals, and animal organisms likely to cause infection to or which are inimical to the growth of plants (permit)
(...)
Wild animals, that is, animals other than those kept in a domesticated state except on a licence issued under the Wildlife Protection Act
(...)
Gases that are ozone depleting substances of (a) the chloroflorocarbons (CFC) family, namely (CFC-11; 12; 113; 114 and 115) and (b) the Halon family, namely Halon 1211; 1301 and 2402
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Keywords
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Secretariat TPR |
WT/TPR/S/353/REV.1 |
S-III§53 |
Belize |
2017 |
Measures |
Technical regulation or specifications |
Energy |
Relevant information
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In 2014, the BBS completed work on a National Standardization Programme which seeks to develop standards and technical regulations for goods and services in key economic sectors over a period of five years (2015-2020). The programme was released in 2016. The key sectors are wholesale and retail, manufacturing, agriculture, tourism, electricity and water supply, construction, petroleum, transportation and communication. They were selected taking into account their contribution to GDP and export earnings and their alignment with national development policies, strategies and action plans. The Programme envisages the establishment of new technical committees, including in the areas of: transportation and road safety; renewable energy and energy efficiency; and medical and industrial gases. The new committees are expected to be operational in the first quarter of 2017.
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Keywords
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Secretariat TPR |
WT/TPR/S/353/REV.1 |
S-III§71 |
Belize |
2017 |
Measures |
General environmental reference |
Agriculture |
Relevant information
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At end-2016, the current biosafety policy was in the process of being reviewed although any change from the current policy of not allowing GMOs in production would require appropriate legislation and regulatory capacity as well as additional investment in laboratories and a budget for biosafety.
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Keywords
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Secretariat TPR |
WT/TPR/S/353/REV.1 |
S-III§82 |
Belize |
2017 |
Measures |
Internal taxes |
Not specified |
Relevant information
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EPZs (export processing zones) pay an environmental tax (Section 3.1.3) and a business tax on local sales (Section 3.3.1.1.3). (...)
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Keywords
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Secretariat TPR |
WT/TPR/S/353/REV.1 |
S-III§104 |
Belize |
2017 |
Measures |
Tax concessions |
Not specified |
Relevant information
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According to data provided by Customs, tax revenue foregone at the border was mainly as a result of import tariff and GST exemptions, followed by RRDs and environmental tax. The value of tax revenue foregone has been increasing (Chart 3.2).
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Keywords
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Secretariat TPR |
WT/TPR/S/353/REV.1 |
S-IV§13 |
Belize |
2017 |
Sectors |
General environmental reference |
Agriculture |
Relevant information
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The Ministry of Agriculture has developed a National Agricultural Policy 2015-2030, which is still in draft form and, at end-2016, had been presented to the Government for approval. Some parts of the Policy relating to the Ministry are being implemented. According to the authorities, the main objectives of the Policy are: to enhance production, productivity, and competitiveness; to increase market development, access and penetration; to increase food and nutrition security and improve rural livelihoods; to enhance sustainable agriculture and risk management; and to enhance accountability, transparency and coordination.
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Keywords
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Secretariat TPR |
WT/TPR/S/353/REV.1 |
S-IV§14 |
Belize |
2017 |
Sectors |
Internal taxes |
Not specified |
Relevant information
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(...) The Environment Tax is applied, at 2%, to all non-CARICOM imports (Sections 3.1.2 and 3.1.3).
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Keywords
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Secretariat TPR |
WT/TPR/S/353/REV.1 |
S-IV§18 |
Belize |
2017 |
Sectors |
Loans and financing |
Agriculture |
Relevant information
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To help achieve the objectives of the draft National Agricultural Policy, one of the priorities identified is to improve domestic and export credit policies to address the relatively high interest rates charged on loans and the difficulties exporters face in obtaining export credits, insurance, and guarantees. At end-2015, 10% of loans by domestic banks (BZ$203 million) and 6% of loans by credit unions (BZ$226 million) were to the agriculture sector. Concessional credit is available from several financial institutions including the Development Finance Corporation (DFC), Belize Enterprise for Sustainable Technology (BEST), Help for Progress, Belize Livestock Producers Association (BLPA), and the Small Farmers Bank/National Bank of Belize.
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Keywords
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Secretariat TPR |
WT/TPR/S/353/REV.1 |
S-Table-IV.5 |
Belize |
2017 |
Sectors |
General environmental reference |
Fisheries, Forestry |
Relevant information
|
Table 4.5 Agriculture, forestry and fisheries expenditure, fiscal years 2012/13-2015/16
2012/13 actual 2013/14
actual 2014/15
actual 2015/16
revised estimate
Programmes
Fisheries Resources Management and Development 2,354,917 2,494,675 2,568,058 2,453,329
Forestry Resource Management 1,899,446 1,989,269 2,123,150 2,525,553
(...)
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Keywords
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Fish
Forest
Natural resources
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Secretariat TPR |
WT/TPR/S/353/REV.1 |
S-IV§25 |
Belize |
2017 |
Sectors |
Other measures |
Fisheries |
Relevant information
|
Shrimp farming is the main aquaculture activity in Belize and had stabilized production at about 7,200 tonnes per year in 2014 (Table 4.7). However, vibriosis affected production in 2015 and only one shrimp farm remained in production, at a much reduced level. Total revenues fell from BZ$132 million in 2014 to BZ$20 million in 2015. BAHA (Belize Agricultural Health Authority), in coordination with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Agriculture and the Shrimp Growers Association, implemented measures to control the disease outbreak. These measures included improved Good Management Practices, introduction of genetically resistant brood stock and the implementation of biological control with the use of Tilapia fish. A task force (Advisory committee) has also been formed comprised of personnel from BAHA and the Shrimp Growers Association in an effort to develop guidelines for improved management practices, registry, bio-security, and movement control, among others, in an effort to control aquatic diseases.
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Keywords
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