The government details the protected share as 25.05 percent; the expansion is scheduled to occur by 4 November 2026 under the timeline of the Blue Bond agreement. This became possible, according to a report published by the International Monetary Fund in 2022, through a debt swap with The Nature Conservancy that reduced Belize's government debt by 12 percent of gross domestic product.
The Belize Sustainable Ocean Plan, or BSOP, is Belize's official ocean spatial plan name, according to a FAQ. As part of the debt swap, Belize repurchased 553 million dollars in foreign debt at 55 cents per dollar in November 2021; a subsidiary of The Nature Conservancy financed the repurchase with a loan of 364 million dollars. The expansion to 25.05 percent was legally anchored, according to the government, through ordinances SI Nos. 132 to 135 in 2024. New partial fishing restrictions were established in areas near Lighthouse Reef, Glover's Reef, and Bacalar Chico, which, according to Mongabay, encountered resistance in the fishing community.
Three New Zones and a Tight Timeline
To reach the next step, the BSOP draft proposes, according to Mongabay, three new marine protected areas with a combined area of about 1,652 square kilometers. The largest of the three zones, the 1,220 square kilometer High Protection for Biodiversity Zone 8 in the middle of Belize's economic zone, had not been actively protected according to Mongabay, while the smallest, a 128 square kilometer expansion at Corona Reef off Toledo, lies in an area with a spawning aggregation of several commercially important fish species. According to planning lead Samir Rosado from the BSOP team, participants largely rejected additional coastal protection zones because that space is considered exhausted; more than 50 percent of corals and nearly 40 percent of seagrass are already in protected areas, while the deep sea is underrepresented. On 8 September, CZMAI submitted the draft to the cabinet for approval; thereafter, according to Rosado, both the House of Representatives and Senate were to approve before the new areas could be officially published. In early October, Prime Minister John Briceño, according to Greater Belize Media, brought a corresponding motion in parliament, which the outlet characterized as passage; opposition leader Tracy Panton criticized that documents were presented only hours before the debate, making parliament a mere rubber-stamp for the executive. Beverly Wade, CEO of the Ministry of the Blue Economy, said according to Mongabay that the government remained committed to the 4 November deadline. Wade also pointed to unspecified flexibilities in the agreement for unforeseen circumstances in the legislative process.
Protection Categories and Open Questions About Implementation
With the three zones, according to Mongabay, approximately 16.3 percent of the ocean would receive high protection and 13.7 percent medium protection, exceeding the contractually required minimum of 15 percent strictest protection. The medium protection zones established in 2024 allow limited, well-managed use according to the government. In mid-October, Rosado described Senate approval and official publication to Mongabay as still pending steps. Fisheries scientist Andrew Rosenberg warned that deep-sea protection is insufficient for sustainability without determined action against overfishing in shallower waters. Leandra Cho-Ricketts, Executive Director of the Belize Fund, responded to Mongabay's question about whether financing is adequate for the 30 percent protection commitment, saying the financing does not cover all local needs but provides an important foundation for collaborative management and measures needed to fulfill government commitments. The CZMAI validation report of 24 September acknowledged that the final area share and legal description of the protected area network, as well as the exact management rules for each new zone, had not yet been clarified.
Comparison: Deep Sea Instead of Coast
Unlike 2024, when fishers criticized the consultations and initial decision on the zones at Lighthouse Reef as rushed, poorly organized, and insufficiently informed, local fishers, according to Mongabay, welcome the new deep-sea zones because they lie far outside their working waters. The current plan also encountered initial resistance from fishers during consultations, according to Mongabay.
Outstanding Steps and Further Deadlines
According to the preliminary timeline presented at the validation session, submission of the package to the Belize Blue Investment Company should still follow. If Belize misses a milestone, financial penalties threaten, which as of mid-October had not yet been imposed, Mongabay reported. Further deadlines follow: By 2027, Belize must apply for at least three protected areas for the IUCN Green List; by 2029, approved and signed management plans must be in place for all zones, including the remote, previously unmanaged deep-sea areas.