Welcome to the Panama Weekly News Roundup! Here’s the latest.
Panama summit stokes vision of health equity in the Americas
Healthcare as a global issue is a big deal, and healthcare equity is even bigger. Finding a solution to providing equal rights to quality healthcare is a big goal for countries in the Americas in the 21st Century. At a recent summit in Panama, leaders in the field met to discuss just that.
Researchers, policymakers and civil society members from 13 countries recently gathered in Panama to begin developing plans to reduce health disparities, and the effort was led by the Center for Health Equity in the Americas (CenHealth) based at USC. Participants aim to form partnerships and promote research and training collaborations to advance health equity — people’s attainment of their highest levels of health, regardless of who they are and whatever their circumstances may be.
“We live in a time of transformation in the Americas,” said Lourdes Baezconde-Garbanati, CenHealth director and professor of preventive medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, which organized the Oct. 7-8 conference. “Coming together to share our vision ensures that we unify efforts on behalf of health equity in some of the most vulnerable populations in the Western hemisphere.”
Source: USC News
Liverpool and Panama Ports agree major partnership
The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) has entered into a significant Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with major UK ports operator, Peel Ports, who own the Port of Liverpool, as the latter gears up for the formal opening of its Liverpool2 container terminal in early November.
High profile Panamanian government and business leaders including Roberto Roy, Minister of Canal Affairs, and Alejandro Moreno, Deputy Administrator of Panama Maritime Authority were shown around the port by Peel Ports’ Chief Operating Officer Gary Hodgson. They were joined by the UK’s Panama Ambassador, Ian Collard, and Ariel Perez Price, the UK’s Director of International Trade in Panama.
The formal agreement creates a strategic alliance aimed at facilitating international trade and generating new business by promoting trade routes between Liverpool and the west coast of South America via the Panama Canal. Mark Whitworth said: “Liverpool and Panama have both responded to the growth of the global container ship fleet with major investment programmes in recent years to accommodate newer generations of container ships. The opening of the expanded canal has the potential to open up new markets for trade and has the potential to shift international trade patterns.
Source: American Journal of Transportation
Panama Signs Up to International Tax Avoidance Agreement
Panama’s government Thursday signed up to an international agreement to combat tax avoidance and evasion, seven months after the country became the focus of global attention with the publication of a trove of leaked documents showing that one of its law firms had created hundreds of thousands of shell companies and offshore accounts for rich and powerful people around the world.
In signing up to the Convention on Mutual Assistance in Tax Matters, the Panamanian government has committed to provide information to the other 104 signatories, which would allow them to identify individuals who are using shell companies or offshore accounts in the country to avoid paying tax.
“They are no longer the difficult kid in the class room,” said Pascal Saint- Amans, director of the Center for Tax Policy and Administration at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which monitors compliance with international tax agreements.
Source: The Wall St. Journal
The Need for Panama Oeste: Developing Panama’s suburbs, west of the Canal
Panama’s western suburbs have long been ignored by developers as a “no go” zone due to their lack of appeal to businesses, and middle to high income residences. That however, is changing, and in a big way. Find out why from one of our latest blog post
The geography behind Panama’s economic development, and their history, is a subtle, yet obvious marker for residents of the capital and its surroundings. Panama City is an ever-expanding metroplex where property values, logistics, and general investment rely heavily on location. This has created a boom for some areas, and a drought for others. Luckily, however, this is all changing, as certain growth areas in Panama City are oversaturated, creating ample opportunities to invest in other locations, and for a fraction of the cost. One of the biggest areas that is filling this need is Panama Oeste (West Panama). Panama Oeste is not, in fact, western Panama, but is rather the western suburbs of Panama City, and is its own province.
Continue reading about Panama Oeste
