Three years after securing a forty-three-million-U.S.-dollar Saudi loan, the government’s proposed university hospital remains stuck in the planning stage. The Briceño administration introduced the financing in 2023, promising a modern medical and teaching facility in Belmopan. But progress has been slow, and construction has yet to begin. So, what is holding up the project, and when will Belizeans finally see movement on the ground? Minister of Health and Wellness Kevin Bernard says the government is working through the remaining steps and hopes to break ground before the end of the year.
Kevin Bernard
Kevin Bernard, Minister of Health & Wellness
“As far as I am aware, progress is undergoing. I know the Saudi’s design tender had gone out. I believe they have now, we are at the stage where the bids will go out for the two countries they narrowed down for them to bid. I am hoping that I am not going to speak out of turn here, but I am hoping that by the end of this year we could ground break and see action, that is my hope.”
The proposed one-hundred-and-fifty-bed facility would serve as Belize’s national referral hospital and train medical students from the University of Belize.
Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.
