BOOST (Building Opportunities for Our Social Transformation)
BOOST is Belize's flagship conditional cash transfer program, run by the Ministry of Human Development, Family Support and Gender Affairs, that gives poor households a small monthly stipend for eligible members (school-age children, children under 5, pregnant women, the elderly, and people with disabilities). Payments are conditioned on children maintaining 85% school attendance and completing routine health/immunization checkups. The program is entirely government-funded through Belize's national budget, with technical and financial support over the years from the World Bank, UNICEF, and the EU's ECHO. In 2026 the government raised BOOST's annual budget from BZ$3 million to BZ$5 million to reach more vulnerable households.
Conditional Cash Transfer, Caribbean, Central America, National Poverty Alleviation, Education Conditionality, Health/Immunization Conditionality, Credit Union Financial Inclusion, Government-run
Headquarters
- Organization Name
- Ministry of Human Development, Family Support and Gender Affairs (Government of Belize)
- City
- Belmopan
- State / Province
- Cayo
- Country
- Belize
Contact
- Phone
- +501 822-2246
- Social media links
Status & Funding
- Organization status
- Active
- Program status
- Active
- Application status
- Rolling
- Funding type
- Government
Benefits
- Currency Type
- Fiat
- Payment frequency
- Monthly
- Ongoing / unconditional
- Yes
- Distribution Type
- Credit union account deposit, digital wallet (DigiWallet)
- Benefit details
Eligible members receive a basic monthly transfer of roughly BZ$44 (about US$22), rising to about BZ$82 (about US$41) per person depending on category, with payments for school-age children increasing at higher grade levels (and differentiated by gender) to counter higher secondary drop-out rates among boys. A maximum of six eligible members per household can be paid. Around 81% of beneficiaries receive funds via credit union accounts, which also serve as an entry point to savings and micro-loan services. Program rules and payment tiers are set out in the BOOST program manual, which is periodically revised (most recently with UNICEF/ECHO support) to allow shock-responsive top-ups during emergencies.
Eligibility
Overview
- Eligibility details
BOOST targets households identified as living in poverty through a Proxy Means Test administered via the Single Information System of Belize (SISB). Within eligible poor households, payments are made for specific categorical beneficiaries: children under 5, school-age children (5-18) conditioned on 85% school attendance, pregnant women conditioned on prenatal checkups, people 60 and older, and people with physical disabilities.
Family
- Family Status
- Expecting
Health
- Disability status
- Yes
Geography
- Countries covered
- Belize
- Residency of Target Geography
- Yes
Application Process
- How to apply
Households register through the Ministry of Human Development's Single Information System of Belize (SISB), either online at the ministry's website/status portal, in person at a Ministry of Human Development district office, or by phone through the ministry's social assistance hotlines. Applicants generally need to provide identification (e.g., Social Security card) and household information for assessment.
- Selection process
SISB data on registered households is used to compute a Proxy Means Test poverty score; households scoring below the program's poverty threshold and containing an eligible categorical member (school-age child, child under 5, pregnant woman, person 60+, or person with a physical disability) are approved for enrollment, subject to available program budget. Continued receipt of payments requires ongoing compliance with education (school attendance) and health (immunization/prenatal check-up) conditions, monitored by the Ministry, with a grievance redress mechanism available for appeals.
