The Protected Areas Conservation Trust today celebrated its 9th anniversary. As has become the norm for the grant organization, the anniversary was commemorated with the usual heaping serving of self praise and with initiatives to continue PACT's work in helping NGO's help nature. How much did they help? We found out.
Alfonso Noble Reporting, email - [alfnoble@yahoo.com]
Over the past nine years the Protected Areas Conservation Fund has grown from a $72,000 endowment fund to a $5 million one where $3 million has been distributed in grants and $2 million kept in the fund. And to celebrate this plenty in a time of national financial famine, today as they do every year on the 6th of June, beneficiaries, stake holders and PACT staff gathered to pay tribute to the Fund's accomplishments. First in line was Minister of Natural Resources Johnny Briceno.
Hon. John Briceno,
"In its 9 years, PACT has evolved as a model trust fund established as a public and private partnership whose board enjoys autonomy in its composition and decision making and whose staff has dedicated many hours in ensuring their exists documented, tested, and proven processes for its accounting, its project granting, and due process in monitoring and evaluation of project grants. PACT was and continues to be herald as an innovative financial mechanism that is locally owned and managed providing autonomy in public/private sector structure, that's what we call totally homegrown."
Valerie Smith,
"We also think its important we get the message out to those who may not readily be accessible to PACT, funds who have nothing to do with it, absolutely anything to do with it. So we think its important for our own staff, for the morale and motivation, for the public at large, particularly in the city and urban areas to get a feel of what this big deal is about for the PACT trust fund and why it is you should be proud that you have it in Belize and why there is such a fund. PACT is a grant agency, we collect funds from visitors who come to Belize and we invest those funds back into conservation through projects from people who are doing work to protected areas or just various conservation activities. We are not a lobbying arm, we don't advocate, and we don't mandate or manage any one area of land, we simply provide the funds to assist those who do that good job."
And today, in keeping with their work PACT once again made a $16,000 donation in motorcycles to various conservation organizations from across the country. The Youth Hostel got a $5,000 grant for its Sheds for Shade Project while the Belize Audubon Society and the Friends of Nature organizations got a combined $154,000 business plan for the management of St. Herman's Blue Hole and Laughing Bird Caye National Park.
Anna Hoare, Belize Audubon Society
"This business plan will help us to communicate our financial needs of the St. Herman's Blue Hole National Park. It is a communication tool actually that looks at what are the needs for the protected area. We will be sharing with stakeholders, with donors, and so they will be able to see the financial aspect of St. Herman's Blue Hole National Park. Essentially it looks at financial sustainability of the protected area which is St. Herman's National Park.
With that today's celebration was not only held to recognize PACT's achievements but to also continue on the fund's work.
At today's celebration PACT launched a 25 minute documentary that featured the PACT-challenge held in March.
