SOCIAL INVESTMENT FUND CELEBRATES TENTH ANNIVERSARY

November 02, 2006

Today the Social Investment Fund celebrates its tenth anniversary. The milestone, according to Minister of National Development Mark Espat, under which SIF falls, marks a time to recollect.

Mark Espat: Minister of National Development

“SIF has invested almost fifty million forty eight point seven million to be specific through financing obtain from the EU, the Commonwealth Initiative the CDB has been a major partner the Government of Belize of course the Inter American Development Bank, the World Bank and PAHO to mention a few of the partners of SIF. Of that amount some thirty five point seven million has been invested in community projects and about ten million in institutional strengthening and operations for one hundred thousand Belizeans and three hundred and five individual contractors have benefited from the various projects taken up by SIF in water and sanitation sector for example in the education sector in the health sector in micro enterprise credit scheme that type of work. SIF was also very active in terms of the rehabilitation work following the Hurricanes Keith and Iris and so the organization continues strive to get that value for money in terms of these public sector investments.” 

Espat also shares the plan for the future.

Mark Espat: Minister of National Development

“The plan is for SIF to continue to be involved in not just the infrastructure element of our national development but also in the human element in terms of improving its outreach to communities. There are several components of ongoing major projects such as the Banana Support Pogramme where the Rural Development funding has increased significantly or this year and for the years moving forward we will get SIF involved in implementing those infrastructure and human intervention projects there. We hope that the organization can build on what is a very transparent a very efficient model in delivering a better quality of life especially our rural population. There is the competence in terms of the staff there is the inclusiveness in terms of the Board of Directors there is the transparency in terms of the ensuring that projects are put out to public tender and that there is community participation. All of those elements I think are critical for the model of governance that we are moving towards and for the whole agenda of reform and getting value for money in the public sector.” 

SIF was established in 1996 as an autonomous institution. Its basic responsibility is to address the human needs of the poor segment of Belize’s population. The funding comes from the European Union, the Commonwealth Debt Initiative and other partners. 

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