February 09, 2026
The Sugar Association of the Caribbean (SAC) congratulates the Governments of Belize and The Co-operative Republic of Guyana on the reaffirmation of their longstanding friendship and shared Caribbean values through the conclusion of a series of Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) aimed at strengthening cooperation across key areas of mutual interest such as tourism, education, defence and security, and agriculture. The MoUs were signed during President H.E. Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali, three-day state visit to Belize, that concluded on Tuesday, February 03, 2026.
In the area of agriculture, the two sister CARICOM nations agreed to collaborate deliberately to achieve their shared ambition to feed CARICOM by capitalizing on the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas (RTC) that provides this legal framework for free movement of goods within CARICOM. Touching on the sugar sector, Belize’s Prime Minister John Briceno said, “Belize and Guyana would provide guaranteed supplies of the sweetener to the rest of the region. As governments, we will assure the private sector that we will work diligently to ensure that CARICOM is an assured market for Belizean and Guyanese producers of refined sugar.”
One may recall, that through a joint venture Santander Sugar Limited and Sucro Limited are building a new cane sugar refinery—Caribbean Sugar Refinery (CSR)—at Santander’s current sugar mill in Western Belize. President Ali visited both Belize Sugar Industries Ltd (BSI) and Santander Sugar Limited during his stay in Belize.
SAC views the partnership between the two nations, as another crucial step toward fulfilling the objective of the regional integration of sugar within the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME), while helping CARICOM to meet its food security goals and also achieve the 25% by 25 food import reduction initiative that has been extended to 2030.
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For further information, see our website: www.caribbean-sugar.org
Or please contact:
Mac McLachlan
Chairman, SAC
m: +44 7785 682810
Email. mac.mclachlan@asr-group.com
William A. Neal
Communications, SAC
m: +501 610 9774
Email. william.neal@asr-group.com