By Charles Gladden
BELMOPAN, Thurs. Aug. 28, 2025
The British High Commission held a send-off event on Wednesday, August 27, at their office in Belmopan, for a group of Belizean students who received Chevening Scholarships to study in the United Kingdom (UK).
“It’s a massive achievement, so we want to celebrate those achievements, and we also wanted to bring their friends and family here as well and give them a great send-off,” said Alistair White, Acting British High Commissioner to Belize.
The Chevening Scholarship is globally recognized as one of the most prestigious scholarship programs. An estimated 60,000 recipients have gotten an opportunity to be a part of the program since it was started over 40 years ago.
It is a one-year Master’s program, fully funded by the British High Commission, and grants its recipients a chance to live and study in their desired field at various universities in the UK, and to develop professionally and academically
“We have six scholars from Belize this year,” said White. “Thousands of people who have applied from this and previous years have demonstrated future leadership, brilliant academics, and an incredibly strong personality. They’re going to some of the most prestigious universities in the world, and they’re going to come back and be contributors in Belize,” he added.
“… I’ve met all of them. We’ve got people working in mental health for children, which will be important to bring back. Everybody here is just driven to make a difference. And I think they’re going to be the absolute cream of the crop,” White further commented.
Edwin Varela of Belmopan is one of the recipients and will be studying Forensic Investigation at Cranfield University. “I chose Cranfield University because of the strong relationship that they have with the British Armed Forces. It’s probably the only university in the region that I could have found that has that type of relationship. The reason I chose forensic investigation is because of my strong background in explosives and the investigation field. What I’m bringing back to Belize, I plan on establishing some frameworks, especially some investigative framework for mostly for the forensics department, but also in collaboration with the Police Department and the Belize Defence Force,” he said.
