BCCI’S 6TH ANNUAL MADE IN BELIZE TRADE SHOW

The Belize Chamber of Commerce & Industry’s 6th annual Made In Belize Trade Show was held on Saturday, June 3rd 2023 from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm at the National Agriculture and Trade Show Grounds in the City of Belmopan. Under the theme “Buy in Belize, Build Belize, Support your local homegrown.” The Trade Show featured over 150 micro, small, medium, and large enterprises that offer 100% local products and services in various locations across the country. This year’s Trade Show was one of the largest to date, garnering visitations by 3,000+ persons throughout the course of the day. We are proud to share that our guests and exhibitors continue to voice their satisfaction with the event which has been deemed an overall success.

In his remarks during our opening ceremony, BCCI President Marcello Blake commented on the magnitude of growth the trade show has seen since its inception in 2018. Moreover, President Blake shared a message of commendation to our nation’s entrepreneurs who exemplify resilience and continue to break boundaries with their ingenuity and passion. He closed his remarks with a message of hope for this year’s show, and encouragement to all entrepreneurs, stating: “To the entrepreneurs out here today, let’s celebrate their successes and learn from their failures. Let’s be inspired by their stories and be motivated to chase our own dreams. We look forward to today’s event, and it will be even more exciting and inspiring than last year’s.”

Other important speakers included H.W. Mayor Sharon Palacio who offered a warm yet energetic welcome to all visitors and exhibitors, CEO of the Ministry of Investment and Chair of BELTRAIDE, Narda Garcia who spoke on the continuous economic expansion of the country thanks to the development of MSME’s and Mr. Derrol Vernon, Owner of Wine Time who gave a heartfelt testimony on his journey as a 3rd generation winemaker and entrepreneur, he thanked the BCCI for its continued support.

Forty-seven exhibitors registered to participate in our annual booth competition. The team of dedicated judges bore the heat visit and access each participant leading to the following businesses emerging victorious:

• Overall Best Booth Award (Sponsored by the Tri-County Regional Black Chamber of Commerce and the Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan)) – Oma Organix

• Most Outstanding Male Entrepreneur Award (Sponsored by Builders Hardware Ltd. and the Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan)) –Smithy’s Natural Blend

• Most Outstanding Female Entrepreneur Award (Sponsored by Hamanasi Adventure and Dive Resort Belize and the Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan)) – Hot Mama’s Belize

• Most Oustanding Youth Entrepreneur Award (Sponsored by Universal Hardware and the Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan)) – 5 Minutes with Dee

• Most Innovative Idea Award (Sponsored by Hamanasi Adventure and Dive Resort Belize and the Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan)) – Hello Body Belize

• Most Eco-Friendly Product Award (Sponsored by Hamanasi Adventure and Dive Resort Belize and the Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan)) - Ikooma

The BCCI takes this opportunity to thank and congratulate all the exhibitors, endorsers, and sponsors who made this achievement possible and thank you to all who visited in support of our local MSMEs. Buy in Belize, Build Belize!

Greetings everyone and thanks for joining us today on this sizzling but very special day in the City of Belmopan for this year’s Made in Belize Expo.

I am always excited when spaces are created for our local businesses to showcase their products and services because we get to see, taste & enjoy the ingenuity of our people. We continue to emphasize the importance of MSMEs as the backbone of our economy, playing a vital role in creating jobs, stimulating economic growth, and improving our quality of life.

In recent years, there has been a collective call from Belizeans to buy locally, as MSMEs play a critical role in strengthening communities, increasing economic prosperity and reduce the social ills of our society, with the positive and productive use of our energy, especially in our youths.

In Belize, MSMEs are responsible for over 70% to total employment and approximately 45% to our country’s gross domestic product (GDP). However, MSMEs encounter many challenges that can derail their longterm sustainability and the years from 2020-2022, made it even more challenging, with the COVID-19 pandemic. Of course, challenges can be turned into opportunities and therefore some pivoted, as the pandemic created its own demands. Unfortunately, not many were able to pivot as that would have required greater access to finance.

I say this without bias, the Government under the leadership of the Honourable John Briceño, is committed to building back better and sustainably, so through MSMEs, as engines of growth. To assist our small businesses, the office of the Prime Minister through BELTRAIDE continues to develop innovative programs and conduct capacity building exercises with our MSMEs, in areas such as leadership, financial management, business continuity, risk management, digital marketing, finance, business modelling and access to capital, to name a few.

We have also been at the forefront of several programs that offer seed capital or grant funding to small businesses including the National MSME Roadshow where we aided over 1,500 small businesses across the country. BELTRAIDE also houses an Incubation Center and where space is allowed for 8 women business owners to conduct their day-to-day business activities and received additional mentorship, plus a mobile ICUBE, where will be traversing the country to assist you with your business needs. We have set up 4 Digital Connect Centers across the country and will be launching 3 more centers in Palmar Orange, Walk, San Pedro and Bella Vista, Punta Gorda.

These Digital Connect Centers are a collaboration between BELTRAIDE, and the UNDP can be used to develop business and digital skills and act as a tool to stimulate opportunities in rural communities. The aim is to reduce the digital divide in youths, women, and the elderly and to boost economic growth through and for Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs), in Belize.

Because we want our small businesses to succeed and as a part of the Office of the Prime Minister and BELTRAIDE’s responsibility to provide support to local businesses, we will soon be launching a “Buy Belizean” campaign which highlight the promotion of local products and to showcase new products and services that may be in the market. While the collaboration of local coalitions and government have led to some support being given to businesses, it is apparent that there is more that needs to be done and we are ready to do our part.

However, in doing our part, we also make a call for all Belizeans to support our local businesses and understand that when you buy local, you are helping to keep our economy strong and our communities vibrant. While we have

Founder: Rt. Hon. George Cadle Price, People’s United Party Leader Emeritus