We also asked Requena about his ministry's efforts to improve the lives of rural communities in Belize all over the country. He's also the Minister of Rural Transformation and Community Development, which means that the Toledo West rep is now the person who must ensure that those remote villages get proper access to water and electricity.
Here's what he had to say about the Government's ongoing push for rural electrification:
Hon. Oscar Requena - Minister of Rural Transformation, Community Development, Local Government & Labour
"With regards to electricity, I want to start off by acknowledging and thanking the European Union for their support in working with the government of Belize, in working with our ministry of rural transformation. So far, we have gotten 5 communities that have been approved in this first tranche to ensure that we can get a mini grid system to ensure that they have electricity and those 5 communities, we have Jalacte, San Vicente and San Benito in the Toledo district and I believe its in San Carlos in the Orange Walk district and we continue the work, we have several other communities in the Toledo district that still do not have access to electricity, we're working very hard with the European Union, with BEL to ensure that we can electrify these communities in this day and age, there is no reason why communities should be without electricity. We need electricity to ensure that our children can have access to a good education, so they can study, so they can charge their gadgets, so they can do their research, so they can enjoy the comfort that other persons across this country enjoy."
