Feature
Belize Set For Boost After Years Of Decline
The Commander of the British Army Training Support Unit Belize (BATSUB) says staffing levels at the base are set to rise over the next three years.
The centre has been a hub for jungle warfare training for decades but it was mothballed in 2011 to save money. Gone were the days when the base was home to more than 1,000 personnel and their families.
The cuts saw staffing numbers reduced to just half a dozen but now numbers are slowly increasing. Currently there are 17 permanent staff at BATSUB - and that's set to rise to 21 by 2019. Lt Col Simon Walton, the new Commanding Officer of BATSUB, says:
"The intent is to be at full operational capability by April 2019, which is well on target currently. There’s still lots of work to do, especially on the infrastructure and bringing things back up to the standard we’d like to have out here, but I think in 2019 we’ll be well set for anything in the future."
Despite the cutbacks in recent years, training in Belize has never really stopped. Today it's just on a much smaller scale, with only two of the training areas open for business. The exercise calendar is now filling up more each year - particularly with company level exercises.
It seems the lure of the jungle as a training environment is hard to turn down. Many believe if you can operate in its challenging conditions, you can operate anywhere.
The trouble is that BATSUB’s base has suffered from the cutbacks. Price Barracks still has many quarters boarded up, the pool is out of bounds and many welfare facilities have seen better days.
The focus for the team now is getting them back on track.
Regeneration work is underway and the new Commanding Officer has plenty of plans.
Personnel posted to Belize can now bring their families with them again but they are dependent on having a car. There’s now a new incentive to making this base a proper home.
After a decline and an unsteady future, the community is growing again and it's thanks to the jungle itself – which year by year presents a challenge that’s hard to ignore.
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