Omar Figueroa is a

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

an politician and a member of the United Democratic Party (UDP). He was elected in January 2015 as Area Representative for the

Cayo North Cayo North is an electoral constituency in the Cayo District represented in the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belize by Michel Chebat of the People’s United Party (PUP). Profile The Cayo North constituency was created ...

constituency in the Cayo District. Figueroa is also a

biologist A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual Cell (biology), cell, a multicellular organism, or a Community (ecology), community of Biological inter ...

and conservationist. Prior to his political career, Figueroa studied jaguars in the Maya Forest Corridor. As of 2020, Figueroa serves as the Minister for Fisheries, Forestry, the Environment, and Sustainable Development.

Early life

In the early 2000s, Figueroa studied jaguars in the Maya Forest Corridor of the Maya Forest for his PhD project. He spent several years collaring and tracking jaguars in order to better understand their movements. In 2013, Figueroa published his dissertation, ''The Ecology and Conservation of Jaguars (''Panthera onca'') in Central Belize: Conservation Status, Diet, Movement Patterns and Habitat Use''.

Political career

In November 2014, Figueroa's predecessor, Joseph Mahmud, unexpectedly resigned from the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

. A

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

in Cayo North to determine Mahmud's successor was held on January 5, 2015."Parliamentarian Resigns; Bi-election to be held in Cayo North on January 5th"
''

The San Pedro Sun ''The San Pedro Sun'' is a newspaper published continuously since 1991 and serves the community of San Pedro Town located on Ambergris Caye in Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern c ...

'', 25 November 2014. (accessed 26 November 2014) Figueroa won the by-election by a nearly 2-to-1 margin, increasing the UDP's overall majority in the House."Dr Omar Figueroa elected as new Area Rep for Cayo North"
''

'', 6 January 2015. (accessed 6 January 2015)On January 12, 2015, Figueroa was sworn in to his first cabinet position,

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In ...

in the Office of the Prime Minister. Figueroa was re-elected in the 2015 general election by a 3% margin.Official Results: General Election
, Elections and Boundaries Department, 6 November 2015. Retrieved 8 November 2015. After re-election, Figueroa was appointed Minister of State for the Ministry of Fisheries, Forestry, the Environment and Sustainable Development. On February 20, 2020, Figueroa was promoted to substantive Minister for Fisheries, Forestry, the Environment, and Sustainable Development. After the resignation of John Saldivar as UDP party leader on February 12, 2020, Figueroa stood as a candidate to replace him as UDP party leader, but later withdrew from the race.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Figueroa, Omar Year of birth missing (living people) Living people United Democratic Party (Belize) politicians Government ministers of Belize Members of the Belize House of Representatives for Cayo North Belizean conservationists