Posted: Tuesday, December 12, 2023. 8:20 am CST.
Government of Belize Press Release
A six-member CARPHA-team, led by Dr. Lisa Indar, Director of the Surveillance, Disease Prevention and Control Division, conducted a country mission in Belize from December 4th to 8th, 2023 to improve food safety and promote healthier, safer tourism in Belize. The CARPHA team, consisting of members from the Regional Tourism and Health Program (THP), the Environmental Health and Sustainable Development (EHSD) Department and the Programme Coordination Unit (PCU), is collaborating with Belize’s health and tourism sectors to (i) strengthen visitor-based surveillance and response and improve healthier safer tourism, and (ii) strengthen food-borne disease surveillance and build food safety capacity.
Tourism and Health are intrinsically linked as demonstrated by COVID-19 and other infectious disease outbreaks which impacted the Caribbean region, including Belize. The necessary collaboration between tourism and health allows for the protection of the tourism industry in the face of public health threats, provided that ongoing proactive measures are put in place. The Minister of Health and Wellness, the Honorable Mr. Kevin Bernard, attended the Belize THP Steering Committee meeting on Monday December 4th. He praised the initiative by CARPHA as he recognized the importance of Health in all policies for Belize. He renewed the Ministry of Health’s pledge to support the Ministry of Tourism and it partners in the revamping of novel and innovative Tourism and Health Program in Belize.
During this CARPHA mission, the THP team engaged in high-level meetings with both Ministry of Health and Wellness, Ministry of Tourism and Diaspora Relations and their partners (Belize Tourism Board (BTB), Belize Hotel Association (BHA), Belize Tourism Industry Association (BTIA), Belize Port Authority and Border Management Agency Belize) to further drive the implementation of the THP’s two early warning and response systems for land and maritime surveillance, the Tourism and Health Information System (THiS) and the Caribbean Vessel Surveillance System (CVSS) respectively.
Meetings and trainings were also held with Health, the Belize Agricultural and Health Authority (BAHA) and the national microbiology, food and veterinary laboratories to advance FBD surveillance and food safety. The program was promoted by the Belize Steering Committee and Dr. Indar via a press briefing and several media interviews, including “Open Your Eyes” television interview.
Regarding Tourism and Health, the Belize THP Steering Committee updated their action plan to ramp up the promotion and implementation of the THP, including advocacy and promotion by the BHA and BTIA. The Ministry of Health and Wellness’ surveillance team and focal points within the Ministry of Tourism and Diaspora Relations were re-sensitized and re-trained on the use of THiS, so that they will serve as master trainers, tasked with training persons in the hotels across the country. Train the trainer filed visits were conducted by CARPHA with Belize health and tourism teams to fourteen (14) properties in Belize City and San Pedro. These properties were sensitized and trained in the confidential Tourism and Health Information System (THiS) and its many benefits, including the acquisition of the Healthier Safer Tourism (HST) Award.
Thirty-two (32) persons were trained in CARPHA’s Infectious Disease Prevention and Control training for the hospitality sector. This training assists in building capacity of the hospitality sector to prevent and respond to impending disease outbreaks within their establishments and is also a pre-requisite for acquiring the HST award. The Belize Port Authority, port officers and port agents were engaged in discussions with CARPHA to determine ways to streamline and incorporate the alerts system of THP’s CVSS into the new Maritime Single Window System carded to be implemented by January 2024. An action plan was developed for integrate the THIS and CVSS visitor-based surveillance into Belize overall surveillance system for sustainability, strengthening health security and tourism resilience.
Regarding food safety, 35 Health, BAHA and Tourism officials participated on the internationally recognized Advanced Food Safety train-the-trainer 3-day workshop and sat an exam for certification. Following this, certified trainees would be expected to conduct training for the hospitality and food service sector. The books for the trained were donated to Belize to promote continuity of the training. Workshops were held on FBD outbreak investigations, and the Belize national food-borne disease action plan was updated. Gaps in integrated FBD surveillance were identified and measures recommended for improvement, given the critical importance of food safety to Belize economy.
Belize officially launched their Tourism and Health Program in October 2016, with continued support from the country’s health and tourism sectors and CARPHA’s Regional Tourism and Health Program. The presence of high-level officials from the Ministry of Health and Wellness and the Ministry of Tourism and Diaspora Relations, together with a multisectoral steering committee team on this mission, is proof of the commitment that the Belizean Government has in promoting Belize as a healthier, safer tourist destination.
CARPHA’s pioneering Regional Tourism and Health Program, the first of its kind globally, aims to bolster countries’ capacities to prepare for and efficiently respond to public health threats, including health, safety, and environmental sanitation (HSE) concerns that may affect countries’ tourism products and by extension, the overall tourism of the Caribbean region. This multi-faceted Program, through the amalgamation of tourism and health sectors, is enhancing health and safety of visitors and locals and improving the quality, competitiveness, and resilience of Caribbean tourism through surveillance, response, guidelines, capacity building, standards, policy, advocacy, and a traveler’s health award.
The CARPHA THP and Food Safety Mission to Belize was made possible through funding under the Subsidiary Agreement between CARPHA and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) “Strengthening Public Health Capacities in the Caribbean Subregion,” the European Union (EU) and the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
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The post Belize: Tourism Loves Health appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
Posted: Tuesday, December 12, 2023. 8:20 am CST. Government of Belize Press Release A six-member CARPHA-team, led by Dr. Lisa Indar, Director of the Surveillance, Disease
The post Belize: Tourism Loves Health appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
