Kenneth Esquivel
Kenneth Rafael Esquivel holds a bachelor’s degree in Natural Resource Management from the University College of Belize and is presently working with the Belize Fisheries Department as a Fisheries Officer under the Capacity of the Capture Fisheries Unit Coordinator. Kenneth have been working at the Fisheries Department since August 2003 where he entered the service as a data collector, under the Capture Fisheries Unit. His main roles were the collection of fisheries dependent and independent data on the primary commercial fisheries such as spiny lobster, Queen Conch and fin fish. His dedication for his work elevated him to take a more responsible role within the unit serving as the data manager which main responsibilities consisted not only in assisting in collecting data but also was task to have datasets well organized for its analysis and interpretations. These new responsibilities opened his interest to explore and venture more into the field of data analysis and since then have played an important role in the National Queen Conch stock assessment exercise, always understudying his predecessors to learn from their abilities and techniques.
In 2013, Kenneth enrolled at the University of Belize, where he pursued his bachelor’s degree in Natural resource management. Since his return to the Fisheries Department, his interest in contributing to the department’s national goals were imminent and it was in 2019, where he was given the responsibilities to lead the Capture Fisheries Unit as coordinator, his main responsibilities are to oversee the monitoring and assessment of the commercial fisheries of Belize. He is also tasked in the supervision of the technical staff within the unit and coordinates the daily activities for the collection of fisheries data. Kenneth has willingly been sharing his knowledge with officer within the department through a series a trainings and workshops and his desire is for everyone to benefit from his knowledge and experience. Kenneth has been crucial in the Department’s coordination with local, regional and international fisheries assessments where he continues to expand his ample abilities by networking with national and international fisheries scientists to improve his abilities in fisheries statistics so to design, plan and implement regular data collection programmes more easily and effectively.
Areas of Expertise
- Geographical Information System Analysis
- Fisheries Research
- Data Analysis
- Economics