Statistical Institute of Belize

23/10/2026

Photos of the day 📸
A few of the Faces in Statistics 📊

16/10/2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SIB Concludes Statistics Week 2026 with a Call for Stronger Partnerships Across Belize's National Statistical System

Belmopan, Belize. October 16, 2026. The Statistical Institute of Belize (SIB) today concluded Statistics Week 2026, bringing together data producers, data users, development partners, academia, students, and the media to mark Caribbean Statistics Day, observed regionally on October 15 under the theme “Harmonizing Data, Strengthening Resilience.” The week's activities highlighted the importance of collaboration, data sharing, and coordinated efforts in strengthening Belize's National Statistical System (NSS).

SIB has commemorated Caribbean Statistics Day since 2013 and expanded the observance into a full Statistics Week in 2023. This year's activities emphasized the importance of collaboration, data sharing, and communication across the NSS in supporting evidence-based decision-making. Discussions also highlighted the role of official statistics in advancing national priorities, including the Medium-Term Development Strategy, the National Strategy for the Development of Statistics (NSDS), the Sustainable Development Goals, and climate resilience.

This year's Statistics Week activities began on October 13 with a public exhibition at the University of Belize gymnasium. Agencies responsible for producing and using official statistics presented interactive booths, data visualisations and statistical games, and demonstrated their surveys and data products. The event drew students from all educational levels, as well as educators, researchers, and members of the public.

The main event, the Data Users Conference, took place on Caribbean Statistics Day, October 15, at the Best Western Belize Biltmore Plaza in Belize City. Mrs. Miriam Willoughby, Deputy Director General of SIB, opened the conference. Mr. Moon Jong Hyun, Country Director of KOICA El Salvador Office, delivered the keynote address. Additional remarks were provided by Mr. Victor Alegria, Director of the Sustainable Development Unit, and Ms. Karina Cazarez, Data Policy Advisor at PARIS21.

SIB presented an update on progress since the endorsement of the NSDS, highlighting improvements in NSS coordination, quality assurance, metadata development, and survey coordination. Ms. Cazarez discussed the evolution of national statistical systems toward integrated data ecosystems, while Mr. Wonjun Bae of UNDP addressed the importance of data partnerships for sustainable development.

The programme featured two panel discussions exploring the coordination of data producers and the information needs of data users. The first panel, “From Data Producers to Data Partners: Building a Coordinated Statistical System,” moderated by Chad Bowman of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), brought together Victor Alegria, Tanya Santos, and Daniel Mendez to discuss strengthening institutional collaboration, harmonizing indicator frameworks, and integrating data from different sources to support national planning and decision-making.

The second panel, “Are We Producing the Data Belize Needs?”, moderated by Gabrielle Hulse, featured Jody Williams, Devon Paulino, and Hipolito Novelo. The discussion explored whether current data production adequately responds to the needs of businesses, researchers, policymakers, and the wider public, with particular attention to data accessibility, relevance, and communication.

Participants also viewed presentations on the BNSS Portal, GeoBelize, and the Community Profile Information System, showcasing different approaches to making information more accessible and useful. Interactive sessions demonstrated how answering national questions often requires information from multiple agencies, while a live digital poll invited participants to identify the statistics most relevant to their work.

The conference concluded with the presentation of five awards recognising contributions to Belize's National Statistical System and the Statistics Week Public Exhibition. The NSS awards recognised excellence in data sharing, statistical innovation and development, coordination, and evidence-based decision-making. The Students' Choice Award for Most Engaging Booth was presented to the Belize Bureau of Standards in recognition of its positive engagement with student visitors during the public exhibition. Mr. Michael Lund, UNDP Deputy Resident Representative, delivered the closing remarks.

SIB extends its sincere thanks to its partners, presenters, moderators, panellists, exhibitors, and participants for their contributions to Statistics Week 2026. The event provided an opportunity to recognise the progress made across Belize's NSS while reaffirming the importance of continued collaboration and coordination in building a stronger, more responsive statistical system.

Publications, data and updates are available at www.sib.org.bz.

MEDIA CONTACTS
Javier Romero
Communications and Marketing Officer
Statistical Institute of Belize
[email protected]
+501 822 2207 ext. 209

16/10/2026

External Trade August 2026
Total merchandise trade exports decreased to $31.1 million (-4.9%)in August 206, down $1.6 million from $32.7 million in August 2025.

Export category with the largest decrease was sugar $2.7 million from $6.5 million in August 2025 to $3.8 million in August 2026.

Total merchandise trade imports increased to$295.1 million (16.5%) in August 2026, from $253.3 million in August 2025.

Import category with the largest increase was mineral fuels and lubricants up $27.2 million from $32.6 million in August to $59.8 million in August 2026.

12/10/2026

Faces in Statistics
Behind every statistic is a dedicated team making the numbers count! Meet some familiar faces working behind the scenes to turn data into meaningful insights that help shape Belize’s future.

09/10/2026

09/10/2026

What do population, jobs, education, the economy, and climate change have in common?

They all run on data! 📊

This Statistics Week, the Statistical Institute of Belize invites you to come and discover the world of statistics at our Student Exhibition, themed “Harmonizing Data, Strengthening Resilience.”

📅 Tuesday, October 13, 2026
🕘 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
📍 University of Belize Gymnasium, Belmopan

Visit exhibitor booths from SIB and other organizations that produce and use data. See infographics, maps, and dashboards in action, test your skills with statistical games and quizzes, and ask questions of the people who collect and analyze Belize’s numbers. It’s a great way to build your data literacy and explore careers in data and research.

Students, teachers, researchers, and the general public are all welcome.

For more information, call us at 822-2207 ext. 209.

09/10/2026

Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) August 2026
Consumer confidence index decreased to 42.4 representing a marginal decrease of 0.4% in August 2026, from 42.6 in July 2026.

Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) August 2026
Male consumer confidence decreased to 39.9 in August 2026, from 43.1 in July 2026.

Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) August 2026
Female consumer confidence increased to 44.4 in August 2026, from 42.1 in July 2026.

08/10/2026

The Statistical Institute of Belize is seeking TWO resourceful, results‐driven and qualified candidates to fill the following TWO TEMPORARY positions for a period of ONE YEAR, within the Economic Statistics Department.

https://sib.org.bz/wp-content/uploads/2026-10-08_Statistician_II_and_AssistantStatistician_II.pdf

08/10/2026

The Statistical Institute of Belize is seeking TWO resourceful, results‐driven and qualified candidates to fill TWO TEMPORARY positions of ASSISTANT STATISTICIAN II for a period of ONE YEAR, within the Census, Surveys & Administrative Statistics (CSAS) Department.

https://sib.org.bz/wp-content/uploads/2026-10-08_AssistantStatistician_II.pdf

07/10/2026

For Immediate Release

SIB Launches Training Series to Strengthen Belize's National Statistical System

BELIZE CITY, Belize. October 6, 2026. The Statistical Institute of Belize (SIB) launched a new training series today for partner agencies within the National Statistical System (NSS). The inaugural session, held at the Best Western Plus Belize Biltmore Plaza, focused on the Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics and the CARICOM Code of Good Statistical Practices.

Together, these international and regional standards provide guidance on how official statistics should be produced and shared, covering important areas such as relevance, impartiality, sound methodology, transparency, confidentiality, and coordination. Applying these standards across the statistical system helps to ensure that the data produced by the SIB and other agencies are reliable and can be trusted by users.

The training series supports one of the goals of the National Strategy for the Development of Statistics, which aims to harmonize standards across the National Statistical System. The training initiative is supported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) through the Enabling of Belize's Statistical System (EBSS) Project, funded by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Additional training sessions will be held over the coming months, covering other areas identified as priorities to strengthen the statistical system. The programme will also help to develop a pool of trainers who can continue sharing their knowledge and supporting capacity building across the NSS.

For more information on the SIB and its statistical programmes, visit www.sib.org.bz.


MEDIA CONTACT

Javier Romero

Communications and Marketing Officer
Statistical Institute of Belize
[email protected]
+501 822 2207 ext. 209

END