Government and power in Belize
Who leads Belize, how the World Bank's governance indicators score it, how many women sit in parliament and government, what the state spends and taxes, and the official bodies that hold power to account. System of government: Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy.
Who leads Belize?
- Head of state: King Charles III (King)
- Representative of the head of state: Froyla Tzalam (Governor-General of Belize)
- Head of government: John Briceño (Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Investment and Economic Transformation, Civil Aviation, and E-Governance of Belize)
- Foreign minister: Francis Fonseca (Minister for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Belize)
Source: Heads of State, Heads of Government, Ministers for Foreign Affairs: Public List (United Nations Protocol and Liaison Service), list dated 15 October 2026. All world leaders.
Governance scores
The World Bank's Worldwide Governance Indicators combine surveys of households and firms with assessments by public, private and non-governmental bodies. Each score runs from 0 to 100; higher means the sources rate governance better. They measure perceptions, and each has a margin of error.
- Voice and accountability
- Measures how far citizens can choose their government, and freedom of expression, association and the media.
- Political stability and absence of violence
- Measures the likelihood of political instability or politically motivated violence, including terrorism.
- Government effectiveness
- Measures the quality of public services and the civil service, and how independent they are from political pressure.
- Regulatory quality
- Measures the government's ability to make and carry out policies that let the private sector develop.
- Rule of law
- Measures confidence in and respect for the rules of society, including contract enforcement, property rights, the police and the courts.
- Control of corruption
- Measures how far public power is used for private gain, including petty and grand corruption and "capture" of the state by elites.
How does Belize score on voice and accountability?
Voice and accountability: 61.6 out of 100 in 2025, 83rd highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 64). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 64.2.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Belize score on political stability?
Political stability and absence of violence: 79.8 out of 100 in 2025, 49th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 69.9). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 65.9.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Belize score on government effectiveness?
Government effectiveness: 48.6 out of 100 in 2025, 112th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 52.5). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 43.5.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Belize score on regulatory quality?
Regulatory quality: 46.1 out of 100 in 2025, 127th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 53.4). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 47.3.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Belize score on the rule of law?
Rule of law: 52.5 out of 100 in 2025, 110th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 53.5). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 48.8.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Belize score on control of corruption?
Control of corruption: 45.2 out of 100 in 2025, 89th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 40.4). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 42.7.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow many women are in Belize's parliament?
Women held 12.5% of seats in the national parliament (single or lower chamber) in 2025, 156th highest of 184 countries with data. Source: Inter-Parliamentary Union, via the World Bank.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow many of Belize's ministers are women?
Women held 5.6% of ministerial posts in 2025, 173rd highest of 190.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow much does the government of Belize spend?
Central government spending (expense) was 22.3% of GDP in 2017.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow much tax does the government of Belize collect?
Central government tax revenue was 21.3% of GDP in 2017, 36th highest of 143.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow much does Belize spend on the military?
Military spending was 1.0% of GDP in 2025, 109th highest of 149 (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, via the World Bank).
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow big are the armed forces of Belize?
Armed forces personnel numbered 2,000 in 2020.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow good are Belize's official statistics?
The World Bank's Statistical Performance Indicator, which scores how well a country's official statistics system works, was 67.7 out of 100 in 2024, 100th highest of 187.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow many births are registered in Belize?
95.7% of births of children under 5 were registered with a civil authority (2015).
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow many people in Belize use the internet?
80.0% of people used the internet in 2024.
Source: World Bank · saved copyOfficial bodies that hold power in Belize
Government
- Government of Belize Press OfficeOfficial government press releases, Cabinet briefs and public announcements.
Elections
- Elections and Boundaries DepartmentVoter registration information, electoral division data and official election results.
Courts
- Senior Courts of BelizeJudgments of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal, practice directions and court notices.
- Caribbean Court of JusticeAppellate and original-jurisdiction judgments, case summaries, court rules and annual reports; it is the final court of appeal for this state.
Public audit
- Supreme Audit Institution of BelizeReports of the Auditor General on public accounts and audits of government entities.
Ombudsman
- Office of the OmbudsmanInformation on complaints about public authorities and Ombudsman reports.
Public contracts
- Government of Belize Procurement PortalPublishes government tender notices, procurement plans and contract award information.
Laws and the official gazette
- Attorney General's MinistryLaws of Belize, legal notices and information from the Attorney General's Ministry.
Government below the national level
- Districts (6): No district government; administrative units of the central government
- City councils (Belize City, Belmopan) and town councils (7): Mayor elected directly; councillors elected every three years by first past the post
- Village councils (about 181) and community councils (12): Chairperson and six councillors elected every three years by village residents aged 18+
- Alcaldes (84 in 2017–18, mostly in Toledo): Usually chosen at village meetings, then appointed by the government for two years
How local power works in Belize
Places in Belize
Sources
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Voice and accountability (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 70f2804fd1e2…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Political stability and absence of violence (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1317de0c85e1…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Government effectiveness (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a775e808dc65…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Regulatory quality (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 83b57e36ff8c…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Rule of law (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0bccc3c054e8…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Control of corruption (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 3b15a5340cdd…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Seats held by women in national parliament (SG.GEN.PARL.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1ae1dc13981a…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Women in ministerial positions (SG.GEN.MNST.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a4e448a5b8bd…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Central government spending (GC.XPN.TOTL.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 808094019f50…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Tax revenue (GC.TAX.TOTL.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08c94b750f31…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Military spending (MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a7f6913a783b…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Armed forces personnel (MS.MIL.TOTL.P1), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 fa4663c743ba…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Statistical Performance Indicator (overall score) (IQ.SPI.OVRL), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08ac7cde9129…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Births registered (SP.REG.BRTH.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 f8d443034ba7…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: People using the internet (IT.NET.USER.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0d78dc658329…)
Each saved copy is the file exactly as downloaded, kept so the figures can be checked even if the source changes. Report an error.