By Belize Live News Staff: Belize’s Sugar Industry Commission of Inquiry will now be livestreamed and open to the press, a surprising reversal from the initial plan to hold hearings behind closed doors. However, the public will still be excluded from attending in person.
The public hearings begin on Monday, August 28, and run through Saturday, September 2. The first phase will be held at Escuela Secundaria Mexico in San Roman village in the Corozal District, where stakeholders from the northern sugar industry will testify. The venue then moves to the Ministry of Agriculture’s conference room at the agriculture showgrounds in Belmopan, where other interests such as Santander Sugar, BEL (Belize Electricity Limited), and the Public Utilities Commission will testify.
A detailed schedule of the hearings has been publicized. The livestream will be accessible online, allowing for wider dissemination of information and greater public awareness regarding the issues and challenges facing the sugar industry in Belize.