National Security Strategy of Belize Foreword T its core a nation’s National Security Strategy outlines a programme for the safety of citizens and the protection of national values and way of life. The Preamble to the Constitution identifies Belize’s principles, beliefs and needs. A Belize’s new Government came to office last February on an explicit Manifesto commitment to national reconstruction, built on Hon. Dean O. Barrow Honorable Dean O. Barrow foundation stones of openness, honesty, and transparency, the brick Minister The Prime Minister and mortar of its building blocks being economic rescue and social and moral renewal. As a Government we are committed to a clear, doable programme of action for lowering taxes, reducing the cost of living, increasing employment and disposable income, widening the social safety net, improving the quality and accessibility of education and health, and forging a new national partnership based on consultation, dialogue and consensus. Belize’s National Security Strategy responds to the more obvious threats to Belize’s security, such as the drug trade, corruption, and the breakdown of social systems. Government is committed to restoring faith in the justice system. A joint intelligence unit made up of the Police, Belize Defence Force, Customs, Immigration, the Coast Guard, Income Tax and the Financial Intelligence Unit will concentrate on illegal activities nationwide in order to strengthen criminal intelligence gathering. A restored Conscious Youth Development Programme, appropriately resourced, is controlling and diffusing gang violence, mainly in Belize City. Traditional threats are increasingly regional and hemispheric, indeed global, in scope, requiring cooperation across borders. Common problems require common, coordinated solutions. Our national security strategy also takes account of non-traditional threats. Annually from June to October we are reminded of our growing vulnerability to climate change, affecting agriculture, sea-level rise, and the intensity of hurricanes. The escalating price of fuel challenges the state as well as private citizens. Health is the foundation of a secure community. Good schools graduate confident citizens who build a more secure Belize. Strong families are essential to national security. In short, Belize’s security ultimately rests on the integral development and participation of its greatest resource, its people. I am pleased to recommend Belize’s National Security Strategy to all. Hon. Dean O. Barrow Prime Minister of Belize