In recent years economies across our region have been adversely affected due to the constant rise in oil prices created mainly by factors beyond our control such as the war in Iraq. The escalation in petroleum prices has affected everything and everyone – the consumer and the producer of goods and services.

Over the past five years, the nation’s entire budget and economy have taken very debilitating hits from the massive fuel bills in foreign exchange for imported oil and gas. Across the region, investments in social programmes (education, health, low-income housing, feeder roads for farmers, public security, rural electricity and water systems) have been affected by the need to cover the oil bills.

In Belize, our Government has taken bold and decisive action to address this major challenge. In order to hold down and stabilize the cost of electricity, hydro-power was pursued. Were it not for Mollejon and Chalillo, light bills today would have been out of this world for most Belizeans. BEL’s arrangement with the Government of Mexico for co-generation has also been helpful. The building of the VACA hydro-facility, the soon to commence co-generation project from bagasse at B.S.I., the mini-hydro down in Toledo, the solar-panel project in remote villages like San Benito Poite – all will greatly assist to reduce our energy dependence and provide us with greater energy security.

What will be of great significance for the long term welfare of the nation is when we as a people become more conscious of the need to conserve energy (read turn off the lights and the appliances when not in use or when leaving the room). With the assistance of the Government of Cuba, thousands of energy-saving light bulbs were installed in homes across the country replacing the incandescent lights. We may not have realized it at the time but this has been a big saving for the majority of poor households.

Other alternative renewal sources of energy that are under active consideration is bio-fuels and ethanol from cane sugar. We should not and do not support the production of ethanol from corn or any other basic food crops. Already this has resulted in a scarcity of corn and inflation in the price of its derivatives such as tortilla and poultry feed – one can see the hand of the big multi nationals up north behind this grotesque action all in the name of profit with no regard for the livelihood of people.

Recently Belize discovered oil with a production level of about 3,000 barrels a day. This discovery and its potential offers new hope and opportunity for us to achieve energy security.

And now following the visit of the Prime Minister and the Minister of Home Affairs and Public Utilities to Venezuela where they attended a Summit Meeting of Petrocaribe, the partnership forged with Venezuela under President Hugo Chavez and the Caribbean countries including Belize will go a long way to facilitate the energy security we all need.

But even more importantly this initiative of President Chavez which allows for 40 percent of the shipment of fuel to be on long term credit for 25 years at 1 percent interest, goes beyond the supply of oil but also includes other components that directly benefit those programmes of our Government to reduce poverty in our country.

This is the type of partnership that should be applauded by all Belizeans. For it is a partnership that puts an emphasis on development rather than dependency. It is a partnership based on mutual respect not servility.

President Chavez deserves our applause; Not the carping and jibes coming from the cynics and apologists of the neo-colonialists and pseudo-nationalists.