By Belize Live News Staff: Government is working on a plan for community stores as a way to ease pressure on household budgets, Prime Minister John Briceño says.
Asked directly whether government-owned stores were on the table, the Prime Minister said the idea is being developed carefully.
“We are working on the idea of trying to come up with community stores because right now we are trying to put the project together,” he said. “You don’t want to do something that 2 or 3 years later it becomes a drain of government finances so we want to do it where it is like a 5% markup on these things.”
He added that government is looking for the right partners, saying, “I’m not in that grocery business.”
The comments come as households face rising electricity bills, high fuel costs and the threat of a bus service shutdown.
On the minimum wage, Briceño said government wants to add another dollar but promised the chamber it would sit down for further discussion on timing.
“We would want to do it from yesterday but it is a process,” he said.
Would a community store with a 5% markup make a difference for you?
