BELIZE

Belize is a British Commonwealth country in Central America. It has a land area of 8886 square miles and a multi-ethnic population of 230,000. Forty-one per cent of the population is under 14 years of age. Belize is a relatively new nation having gained independence from the UK in 1981. It has a struggling economy due to trade liberalization and the loss of preferential markets for its sugar, citrus fruits and bananas, which are the basis of the economy.

Education System

Primary education is free and compulsory between the ages of 5 and 14. There are 284 primary schools in all but only 75% of Belizean children attend school. The government directly manages 42 primary schools and 9 secondary schools. The rest are managed through  partnerships with  churches.

The Ministry of Education is charged with setting the national curriculum, examinations, and formulating policy.  The partner church is in charge of the general administration of the schools including the hiring and firing of teachers. The government spends about 22% of its budget on education.  Ninety-two per cent of that goes towards teachers' salaries (Education Statistical digest, 1999).  It pays 100% of the teachers' salaries and up to 70% of capital projects at the primary level.

Since late 1991, the Ministry of Education has focused its attention on improving the quality of primary education.  However, according to a UNHCR Report in January 2005, from the Committee on the Rights of the Child, the completion rate of primary school is only 35 per cent.