In Belize National Budget presentation it was said that all taxes on sanitary products for women will be removed.
The change will happen in the CARICOM Member State on April 1, 2023. It was announced during Women’s Month.
Belize now joins The Bahamas, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago in an encouragingly growing list of CARICOM countries to remove taxes on sanitary products.
Prime Minister John Briceno said on Friday that the 12.5% GST tax, the 20% import duty tax, and the 3% environmental tax on women’s sanitary products will be taken away.
He said more about the issue by saying that a few weeks ago, after his wife, the Special Envoy for the Development of Families and Children, and the Minister of Human Development, Families, and Indigenous People’s Affairs, Dolores Balderamos Garcia, made passionate pleas, Cabinet decided that all taxes on women’s sanitary products would be removed on April 1.
UNICEF said that many women and girls can’t deal with their periods in a healthy, dignified way.
It said, “This has far-reaching effects that limit their freedom of movement and personal choices.” It makes it harder to go to school and get involved in the community. And it puts their safety at risk, which adds to their stress and anxiety. Making menstrual products more affordable for women and girls protects their dignity and boosts their self-esteem, especially among teens.
Trinidad completed its zero-rated transition in February 2016, marking a watershed moment regionally which was followed by The Bahamas in January 2021 and most recently in Barbados in April 2022. Additionally, the Government of Guyana introduced a zero-rated policy in March 2021, however, it applies only to sanitary napkins, not any other menstrual product.
Only seven other countries worldwide have eliminated taxes on female sanitary products namely Scotland, New Zealand, South Africa, Kenya, Botswana, Uganda and Zambia, according to Global Citizen.
