Belize: Intentional homicides (per 100,000 people)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2022, Belize's intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) fell 3.56 on 2021 (from 31.62 to 28.06).

Across the 21 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2021), the average change was +0.69 and a typical year strayed about 6.1 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 9.25 in 2010 and the biggest yearly fall was 14.38 in 2013. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2013 to 2022 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 12% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2022, Belize had the 6th highest value of the 23 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Belize in the 2022 ranking

• South Africa — 2nd of 23: 43.72
• Trinidad and Tobago — 3rd of 23: 40.44
• Bahamas, The — 4th of 23: 32.2
• Venezuela, RB — 6th of 23: 12.65
• Seychelles — 7th of 23: 7.97
• El Salvador — 8th of 23: 7.9

What this measures

An intentional homicide is defined as an unlawful death inflicted upon a person with the intent to cause death or serious injury.

Limitations: Statistics reported to the United Nations in the context of its various surveys on crime levels and criminal justice trends are incidents of victimization that have been reported to the authorities in any given country. That means that this data is subject to the problems of accuracy of all official crime data. The survey results provide an overview of trends and interrelationships between various parts of the criminal justice system to promote informed decision-making in administration, nationally and internationally. The degree to which different societies apportion the level of culpability to acts resulting in death is also subject to variation.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a aggregate values are computed by unodc. for additional information, please see the unodc website: https://dataunodc.un.org/sites/dataunodc.un.org/files/metadata_intentional_homicide.pdf.

All 23 values

Intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) in nearby economies

• Antigua and Barbuda — 10.72 (2023)
• Argentina — 4.49 (2023)
• Bahamas, The — 32.2 (2022)
• Barbados — 7.44 (2023)
• Brazil — 19.28 (2023)
• Cayman Islands — 4.37 (2020)
• Chile — 6.35 (2023)
• Colombia — 24.91 (2023)
• Costa Rica — 17.75 (2023)
• Cuba — 4.46 (2019)

More public sector data for Belize

• Military expenditure (current USD) — 33.32 million (2025)
• Military expenditure (current LCU) — 66.63 million (2025)
• Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 1% (2025)
• Armed forces personnel, total — 2,000 (2020)
• Armed forces personnel (% of total labor force) — 1.32% (2020)
• Net investment in nonfinancial assets (current LCU) — 148.91 million (2017)
• Net investment in nonfinancial assets (% of GDP) — 3.29% (2017)
• Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) (current LCU) — -52.73 million (2017)
• Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) (% of GDP) — -1.16% (2017)
• Grants and other revenue (current LCU)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Belize's intentional homicides (per 100,000 people)?

28.06 in 2022, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2000?

It is up 64.79% from 17.03 in 2000 (2.3% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 43.36 in 2012 and the lowest 17.03 in 2000.

How does Belize rank?

6th highest of 23 economies with data for 2022.

Is the latest change in intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) unusual for Belize?

In 2022, Belize's intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) fell 3.56 on 2021 (from 31.62 to 28.06). Across the 21 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2021), the average change was +0.69 and a typical year strayed about 6.1 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator VC.IHR.PSRC.P5, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: UNODC Research - Data Portal – Intentional Homicide, UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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