So, while the government has given subsidies to tourism stakeholders and bread bakers, not to mention the fuel caps on regular and diesel gasoline, will there now be an egg subsidy?
That's what we asked the CEO in the Ministry of Economic Development this morning:
Dr. Osmond Martinez, CEO, Ministry of Economic Development
"Again, we have to go to the origin of the problem, because there is already subsidies plan for fuel, diesel. The government is only making.01 cents or 1 cent for diesel, after making about $3.00 with the GST and duty - $3.65 cents. Remember the government does not print money. The government has to pay all the public service, the sovereign debt, all the utilities with monies that are being collected through revenues. Because a lot of people may think oh the government can just print money. No, that doesn't work so."
"Never in the history of the government of Belize there has been so many subsidies as today; subsidies for bread, for fuel, for the tourism industry, for the agro-productive sector and in fuel for example when you look at the revenues from fuel, what it represents to the revenues and fiscal budget for the government of Belize, practically it represents 20%, so it's like between 15-20% of the total revenues. So the question that should be ask now how will the government be able to balance its fiscal budget knowing that there are so many losses in terms of revenues and we are hoping that after September, experts are predicting that if the interest rates keeps high as it is now, definitely some countries will go into recession like the United States and Europe will definitely go into recession and it will also help to stabilize the supply chain and to find that point of equilibrium between supply and demand, the demand and supply."
