Belmopan

Sister cities

• Taipei

History

After Hurricane Hattie in 1961 destroyed approximately 75% of the houses and business places in low-lying and coastal Belize City, the government proposed to encourage and promote the building of a new capital city. Although they were not ready to commit to funding such a large project, the British government showed interest due to the logic of locating the capital on high ground safe from storm surges. To encourage financial commitment from the British government, Premier Price and the People's United Party government invited Anthony Greenwood, Secretary of State for the Commonwealth and Colonies, to visit Belize. One of the highlights of this visit was the unveiling of a monument at mile 49 on the Western Highway. The monument records that Lord Greenwood dedicated the site for the new capital on 9 October 1965. The name chosen for the new capital, Belmopan, is derived from the union of two words: "Belize", the name of the longest river in the country, and "Mopan", one of the rivers in this area, which empties into the Belize River. The initial estimated cost for building this new city was 40 million Belize dollars (US$20.5 million). Only 20 million Belize dollars (US$10 million) were available, but the momentum was not to be lost. In 1967, work began; the first phase of the new city was completed in 1970 at a cost of 24 million Belize dollars (US$12 million). From 1970 to 2000 the administration of Belmopan was managed by the Reconstruction and Development Corporation, known as "Recondev." Recondev was vested with the power and authority to provide, or cause to be provided, the municipal functions necessary for the smooth running of the city's business and infrastructure. There was a reluctance initially amongst foreign governments to relocate their embassies to…

Geography

Belmopan is inland from the Caribbean Sea and above sea level, located near the Belize River Valley with a view of the Mountain Pine Ridge foothills. The city is off the Hummingbird Highway. Two and a half hours south of Belmopan by road is the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary. Belmopan features a tropical monsoon climate (Am) under the Köppen climate classification. The city has a lengthy wet season that runs from May through January and a short dry season covering the remaining three months. As is the characteristic of many cities with a tropical monsoon climate, Belmopan sees some rainfall during its dry season. March and April are Belmopan's driest months with roughly of rainfall observed on average during those months. As with Belize City, these are somewhat unusual months for a city with a tropical monsoon climate to have its driest months of the year. Typically the driest month for a city with this climate type is the month after the winter solstice, which in Belmopan would be January. Average monthly temperatures are somewhat constant throughout the course of the year, ranging from .

Most-observed species

• Spot-breasted Wren

  Pheugopedius maculipectus (Lafresnaye, 1845) · Aves
  7,655
• Melodious Blackbird

  Dives dives (Deppe, 1830) · Aves
  6,092
• Rufous-tailed Hummingbird

  Amazilia tzacatl (de la Llave, 1833) · Aves
  5,736
• Great Kiskadee

  Pitangus sulphuratus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  5,595
• Clay-colored Thrush

  Turdus grayi Bonaparte, 1838 · Aves
  5,218
• Golden-fronted Woodpecker

  Melanerpes aurifrons (Wagler, 1829) · Aves
  5,206
• Morelet's Seedeater

  Sporophila morelleti (Bonaparte, 1850) · Aves
  4,883
• Social Flycatcher

  Myiozetetes similis (Spix, 1825) · Aves
  4,796