Belize to install 1,000 surveillance cameras with facial recognition from March

In Belize, tracking crime suspects and crowd trouble incidents will soon become easier with the planned installation of at least 1,000 surveillance cameras in the capital city.

The information, reported by Great Belize TV, indicates that the project, set to begin in March, seeks to put in place a surveillance infrastructure in Belize City and other parts of the country, equipped with features including facial recognition to facilitate real-time monitoring and evidence collection for crimes such as kidnappings, robberies and murder.

Already, an inauguration ceremony has taken place for the installation of 50 Pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) surveillance cameras as part of the project. The ceremony took place on January 11.

According to the country’s Police boss, Commissioner Chester Williams, the system which will also have motion video detection capabilities, will be able to track unusual movements and send an alarm to alert the police of such incidents.

“And it doesn’t only send an alarm; it also zooms in on the area where the problem is detected to pick up who is around,” Williams states, as quoted.

The official also explained that as part of the system, panic buttons will be installed alongside, to permit individuals in distress send signals to security officers.

He underlines that the objective of the project is to enhance public security and safety, and make it easier for law enforcement officers to intervene timeously when any public trouble is reported.

“Let’s say, for example, you’re walking on Albert Street and you’re robbed; there’s a panic button there. Press that panic button that sends an alarm right away. The camera in the area will go to the area where the panic button is, and it will pick up who is around, and if there’s anybody fleeing, the camera follows them until the police arrive,” is quoted as explaining.

In addition to the security system deployment, Willians has also directed that search operations be conducted more frequently to identify criminal gangs, while also keeping a close eye on the activities of motorbike riders.

The video surveillance project in Belize is set to commence after it was halted last year over data storage and management issues.

Williams said they wanted the data collected from Belizeans to be stored “in house” by the contracted US company Biometrica. He indicated that if no agreement was reached about where to keep the data, they would look elsewhere for terms that would be more favorable for the government.

The project is being implemented within the framework of the Belize Integral Security Program (BISP), with funding from the Central American Bank for Economic Integration to the tune of about $30 million.

Article Topics

Belize  |  biometric identification  |  biometrics  |  facial recognition  |  video analytics  |  video surveillance