Since external funding for the Coastal Zone Management Authority and Institute (CZMAI) dried up, there's been a scramble to find a way to keep the organization going.
And it's not just a luxury; the authority has been working to make sure Belize's precious coastal and marine resources like the reef and Goff's Caye are not decimated by rapacious cruise ship interests. But now "no money noh deh" and the work that the authority carried out hang in the balance.
It's an ongoing funding crisis, and today there was another session to find out where the authority's operational budget will come from.
Fisheries Ministry CEO, Hugh O'Brien says that today's key word is viability:
Hugh O'Brien, CEO Ministry of Fisheries
"There have been some discussions of merger with the fisheries department and the ministry, the minister himself, have decided to taken a second look at it and hence the reason for this consultation. Two consultants have been contracted to talk to all the players in the game and offer to Belize some way forward. We expect three options and an indication which one would be the best way forward. We hope the VCZAMAI can continue to exist, maybe working with the UB, all of that we are considering or could it be developed along the lines of a regional language center."
O'Brien says that presentations will be made to cabinet after which final decisions will be taken on the fate of the organization. That is expected to take a month's time.