Author: michaelm
The Colón Free Trade Zone, the second largest free trade zone in the world, closed 2025 with a significant year-end rebound. This recovery followed a difficult first nine months defined by global trade tensions and high tariffs. Official year-end data shows total commercial movement reached $27.9 billion, an 11.9 percent increase over 2024 figures.This positive final result masked a year of sharp contrasts for the Panamanian trade hub. Activity through September had recorded an 8.2 percent cumulative drop, with transactions totaling $17.1 billion. The dramatic fourth-quarter surge, driven by a spike in reexports, ultimately reversed the earlier negative trend and…
Panama City’s historic Casco Antiguo district hosted the annual Festival La Calle de los Sombreros this weekend. The event drew thousands of residents and tourists to celebrate local culture and the start of the summer season. Organized by the Mayor’s Office of Panama, the festival transformed the iconic Casco Antiguo, Panama into a lively pedestrian corridor. Attendees enjoyed music, food, and crafts while organizers distributed 1,500 traditional Panamanian hats to the public. A Cultural Reactivation in the Historic Center This year’s festival served a dual purpose. It celebrated Panamanian heritage while formally reactivating the “Calle de los Sombreros” urban intervention.…
The Panamanian Ministry of Culture has launched a new artisan marketplace to harness the economic power of one of the country’s largest folkloric events. Officials unveiled the plan for a dedicated “Artisan Walkway” in Las Tablas this week, aiming to transform the annual Thousand Polleras Parade into a stronger engine for regional commerce and cultural promotion.This strategic initiative seeks to capitalize on the thousands of visitors who travel to Los Santos Province each year for the iconic festival. The walkway will provide a centralized venue for artisans from across Panama to display and sell handmade goods directly to attendees. By…
Panama has lost its position as the leading destination for foreign investment in Central America and the Caribbean. The country now trails the Dominican Republic and Costa Rica, which are attracting billions in new capital for manufacturing, renewable energy, and tourism projects. This shift, confirmed by 2025 financial data, signals a major reconfiguration of the region’s economic landscape as nations compete for a share of global capital.Before the pandemic, Panama consistently led the region in attracting Foreign Direct Investment. It drew $4.75 billion in 2018 and another $3.89 billion in 2019. The country’s post-pandemic recovery, however, has been marked by…
Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino is confronting intense scrutiny over a series of judicial decisions that critics argue show a pattern of political interference. Multiple high-profile corruption and money laundering cases involving political allies have been dismissed or overturned since he took office in July 2024. Legal analysts and opposition figures claim these actions represent a systemic erosion of judicial independence in favor of executive power.The controversy spans several distinct cases, each involving individuals connected to Mulino’s administration or inner circle. They include the dismissal of a case against the brother of his foreign minister, the absolution of his own…
Panama City Mayor Mayer Mizrachi has unveiled plans for a new international Carnival festival in the capital. The initiative aims to attract foreign tourists and generate revenue by transforming the city’s traditional celebrations. Mizrachi announced the strategy on Thursday, targeting the upcoming Carnival season in early 2026.The mayor’s vision involves significantly scaling back the capital’s classic “culecos,” or water-soaking street parties, to make room for a more curated, tourist-focused event. He framed the move as a necessary evolution to compete on a global stage. The traditional celebrations, he argued, will remain vibrant in Panama’s interior provinces.”We have to open our…
The Institute for Training and Development of Human Resources (IFARHU) in Panama will open applications for its 2026 General Scholarship Competition on January 12. Officials announced the program now requires a higher minimum grade point average for most applicants, allocating over $50 million to support students across the country.Carlos Godoy, the director of IFARHU, confirmed the details. The application window will run for less than two weeks, closing on January 23, 2026. This annual competition provides critical financial aid for primary, secondary, and university-level students attending both public and private institutions.New Academic Thresholds for ApplicantsA key change this year involves…
A group of skateboarders at the popular Cinta Costera III park in Panama City reported a violent assault by a gang of minors this week. The attack has sparked urgent calls for improved police protection in the recreational area located near the El Chorrillo neighborhood.Roberto Velasquez, a professional skater and Panamanian singer with fifteen years of experience, provided a firsthand account of the incident. He shared video evidence on social media showing visible injuries sustained during the beating.”They beat us to a pulp, literally,” Velasquez stated. [Translated from Spanish]He explained that harassment from groups of young people in the area…
Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino confirmed plans for a new international trip during a public infrastructure event on Thursday. The president will visit Switzerland and the United Kingdom next week for a series of official state meetings. This marks the nineteenth foreign journey of his administration, which began in July 2024.Mulino made the announcement while inaugurating a major highway interchange in the city of Chitré. He stated the diplomatic visits would address matters of national importance, though he did not provide a detailed itinerary for the European tour. The trip continues a pattern of frequent international engagement since he took…
Growers in Panama are beginning the 2025-2026 harvest of the world’s most expensive coffee, the prized Geisha variety, while confronting significant climate instability that threatens yields. The harvest is now underway in the high-altitude regions of Boquete, Tierras Altas, and Renacimiento in Chiriquí province, the exclusive home of a coffee that shattered global price records last year.In the 2025 Best of Panama (BOP) auction, a 20-kilogram lot of Geisha natural process coffee sold for an unprecedented $30,204 per kilogram to Dubai’s Julith Coffee. This sale cemented Panama’s status as the producer of the globe’s premier specialty coffee. Industry leaders now…