In 1991 Belize was admitted to the Organization of American States (OAS). The same year, Guatemala’s new president, Jorge Serrano, reached an agreement with then-prime minister George Price that led to full Guatemalan recognition of Belize’s independence the following year and the signing of a nonaggression pact between the two nations in 1993. The UK withdrew its troops from Belize in 1994.
Belize’s tourism industry became a mainstay of the economy in the 1980s and 1990s, growing from 64,000 tourists in 1980 to 247,000 in 1992. By 1995, tourism surpassed all other sectors, including the sugar industry, as a source of foreign exchange, and it continued to grow through the remainder of the decade. Challenges facing Belize in the late 1990s included high unemployment, a growing involvement in South American cocaine trafficking, and increased urban crime, which worsened in 1998 and 1999, prompting new gun control measures.
Negotiations continued with Guatemala over territorial disputes not settled by the 1991 agreement, mainly Guatemalan claims to land in the southern part of the country. Tensions between the two countries continued into the early months of 2000, when Belize’s ambassador was expelled from Guatemala, and talks scheduled for February were suspended. But a hurricane in 2001 hurt Belize and Guatemala and help reduce tensions between both countries. After three years of rapid economic growth, Belize’s economy expanded by just 3% in 2001 and 2002.
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
If you would like to make a comment, please fill out the form below.
