Labour Force Surveys are carried out in April and September – and usually these figures reflect seasonality of the labour force – meaning that in April when tourism is still in season – the unemployment is low – but in September, when the season is off, the unemployment is high. But this year is unusual because the unemployment figures released today show hardly any difference between April and September. The Statistical Institute of Belize released the latest figures – and they show unemployment at 10.2% in September, meaning 5,900 more people were working when compared ot last year at the same time. The Director General said that the increased employment of women is what's bridging the gap:…

Dr. Leopold Perriott - Director

"As far as the unemployment rate, we estimated a 10.2% in September, that's the current estimate. The country has a couple highs, a high 15.2 in Stann Creek and 14.0 in Cayo. This compares with September 2014 for the country, this is a 12.2% in September 2014, so it's down by almost 2 percentage points. But when I look at the numbers, I think the females are driving these numbers. Unemployment is down for females, the unemployed persons are down by 3,039. I think the females are the ones who are driving the decreasing in unemployment rates."

We'll have more statistics from the S-I-B later on in the news – as they tell us about GDP contraction in the third quarter….