On October 23, 2020, the Ministry of Public Service in partnership with the Belmopan City Council inaugurated the Public Service Walk of Recognition and Inspiration.
The Public Service Walk of Recognition and Inspiration serves as an alternative to the annual Public Service Gala Awards which was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, dedicated and innovative public officers will be honored by having their names engraved into the Walk for generations to come.
Located on the sidewalk between the Angelus Press and Belize Bank on the west Ring Road and leading up to the stairs of the National Assembly building, the Public Service Walk of Recognition and Inspiration is also intended to add character to the City of Belmopan which is historically known as the city of public service.
Public officers can be recognized based on two categories. The long service award recognizes public officers who have served for 30 years or more. Public officers and ministries that have displayed initiative and acts of heroism, such as frontline workers, can be nominated for the outstanding award. The names of the nominees for the outstanding award to be engraved on the Public Service Walk of Recognition and Inspiration are then selected by an independent committee.
Dr. Peter Allen, CEO of the Ministry of Public Service, expects the Walk to expand with additional milestones throughout the years. At the inauguration he said, “We have civil servants across the country who go to enormous lengths in difficult conditions and circumstances to provide public service to all Belizeans. We want to recognize those civil servants. We want to be inspired by their efforts, and we want to make sure that other public officers and those who aspire to become public officers in the future are aware of the great work that they are doing and what can be done by people all around the country to make our country even better.”
The memorandum of understanding for the establishment of this monument was initially signed by Dr. Peter Allen, CEO of the Ministry of Public Service, and Mayor of Belmopan Khalid Belisle on August 26, 2020.