Belize’s First Climate Change Bill Introduced

Minister of Climate Change Orlando Habet has introduced the Climate Change and Carbon Market Initiatives Bill 2025, which he described as “the very first climate bill in the history of Belize.”

Habet said, “Mr Speaker, this is the Climate Change and Carbon Market Initiatives Bill 2025. I rise to introduce a bill for an act to develop, implement, manage, and regulate mechanisms to enhance climate resilience and low-emission development for the sustainable development of Belize. To respect the objectives and principles of the International Climate Change regime ratified in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement to establish a market in Belize to trade carbon credits and to provide for matters connected herewith or incidental thereto.”

The minister said that the bill has the full support of the government. “For years, Belize has been on the front lines of the climate crisis, with hurricanes stronger than ever, droughts and diseases threatening our farmers, and seas that rise to claim our coasts. These are no longer distant warnings but lived realities for every Belizean.”

He noted that the legislation provides a foundation to both address threats and create opportunities. “This bill is our response. It gives Belize for the very first time the legal and institutional foundation to govern our climate future with strength and with certainty. It sets in place the structures that will allow us not only to protect our land, our waters, and our people, but also to benefit from the new opportunities of the global carbon market,” he said.

Habet outlined four major reforms in the bill. “First, it creates the Belize National Climate Change Council, our highest policy body for climate action, together with a dedicated Department of Climate Change and a National Transparency Unit. Second, it establishes a comprehensive national measuring, reporting and verification system and a carbon registry that will guarantee Belize meets international standards for transparency, reporting and data integrity. Third, it authorises a high-integrity carbon market for Belize. One that protects landholder rights, guarantees free prior and informed consent for our indigenous peoples and local communities, and ensures that benefits are shared fairly and equitably. And finally, it provides compliance and enforcement mechanisms, including penalties and adaptive regulations to safeguard integrity, transparency, and readiness for the future.”

Habet added, “This is a proud and defining moment for our nation. A moment when Belize takes bold action, not just for today, but for tomorrow. A moment that says to our farmers, our fishers, our youth, and our children, we will not leave you behind, and we will not leave you unprotected. I invite every member of this honourable house to join hands and lend your full support to this transformative legislation. Together, let us pass this bill and mark the beginning of a new Belize: resilient, sustainable, and full of green opportunity.”