University of Belize Requests Increase in Government Subsidy

Another demand that the government is facing is that from the University of Belize (UB).  Recently, the facility has asked for an increase in subsidy, taking it from 7.6 million dollars to ten million dollars for the current fiscal year.  It is another demand for the government that the Minister of State for Finance, Chris Coye, says may not be sustainable.

Christopher Coye, Minister of State (Finance): “When it comes to the University of Belize I would encourage a comparison with other universities as to how they leverage their balance sheet, how they look to generate income, how they invest and generate income in a way that makes that institution self sustainable. So there are many areas I believe that UB has opportunity in and we used to have a Spanish English Language program I think that has tremendous potential if invested in in a significant way but there are many others areas whether in environment, the assets that the University of Belize has in terms of Calabash Caye as one example how do we attract other universities for exchange programs that actually can enable the charging of feeds at the foreign university’s rates. Those provide revenue opportunities that can make the university more sustainable.”

UB made the initial request for the increase back in mid-2024 following an assessment made by the school’s Board of Trustees in the year before.