Belize is on high alert as the New World Screwworm continues to spread across the country. First confirmed back in January, the parasitic outbreak has now led to one hundred and sixty reported cases, affecting communities from the deep south in Toledo to as far north as Orange Walk. Chief Veterinary Officer Doctor Roxana Alvarez shared the latest update, revealing that thirty-five communities in Toledo alone have been impacted, along with dozens more in Cayo, Stann Creek, Belize, and Orange Walk Districts. While the Ministry of Agriculture has launched an aggressive surveillance and treatment campaign, new cases in Orange Walk over the past two weeks have prompted ongoing investigations.
Dr. Roxana Alvarez, Chief Veterinary Officer
“New World Screwworm was confirmed in Belize in early January 2025. Since then, we have had a cumulative total of a hundred and sixty cases. This started in Crique Sarco, in the Toledo District and has spread across southern and central Belize. At the end of epidemiological week 24/25, June 14th 2025, or last Saturday, we had thirty-five communities affected in the Toledo District, five in the Stann Creek District, twenty-nine communities in the Cayo District, four in the Belize District and four communities in the Orange Walk District. The case distribution is as follows: Toledo – ninety cases; Stann Creek – five. Cayo – fifty-seven; Belize District – five, and the Orange Walk District – two. Within the past two weeks, two cases have appeared in the Orange Walk District and the epidemiological investigation is ongoing. The delimited surveillance area is approximately three miles surrounding the affected establishments. Epidemiological investigation includes interviews, inspection of animals, treatment of all wounds found on animals in the area. So far, no additional cases have been found in the Orange Walk District and the investigation is ongoing.”
