Author: spieper
Panama’s National Decentralization Authority (AND) has launched a digital platform allowing citizens to track thousands of community projects funded by decentralization funds. The new tool, which includes an interactive map and dashboard, provides real-time data on over 4,700 approved initiatives across the country’s provinces and indigenous regions.AND Director Róxana Méndez announced the platform’s launch this week. She stated the system aims to bring unprecedented transparency to how local governments spend public money. Since the current administration began, officials have approved projects worth more than 130.3 million dollars for municipal and community boards.”This tool allows any citizen to consult, in a…
Thirty-six years after the United States military intervention in Panama, the families of 236 people reported missing continue their search for answers. On December 20, 1989, a night of bombing and ground assaults left a wound that has yet to heal for hundreds of Panamanians. A special commission and the nation’s Public Ministry are now engaged in a painstaking forensic effort to locate and identify the remains of those lost during the United States invasion of Panama. The work focuses on the chaotic hours between the night of December 19 and the early morning of December 20. Combat erupted at…
Panama’s Social Security Fund (CSS) has placed 18 clinics and 15 hospitals on a nationwide green alert. The preventive measure addresses an expected increase in medical emergencies during the Christmas and New Year holidays. The alert period runs from midday on December 24 through the morning of January 2, 2026.Emergency services at these facilities will operate with reinforced medical staff, medications, and surgical supplies. The state insurer aims to ensure uninterrupted care for its beneficiaries during a traditionally high-demand period. Nearly six thousand CSS workers are scheduled to cover the holidays.”The objective is to ensure the response capacity of our…
Veterinarians and rescue organizations in Panama City are issuing urgent warnings to pet owners ahead of New Year’s Eve. The traditional use of fireworks poses severe risks to animals, causing widespread fear and leading to injuries and lost pets every December. Experts explain that dogs and cats experience the loud explosions as direct threats due to their highly sensitive hearing.This auditory assault can trigger intense physical and psychological distress. Common reactions include severe anxiety, panic, and disorientation. Pets may exhibit uncontrollable trembling, rapid heart rates, excessive drooling, and frantic panting. In their terror, animals often bolt from homes, sometimes running…
The decaying shell of the former Hospital Río Abajo clinic in Panama City’s Parque Lefevre district now serves as a vandalized shelter for homeless individuals. Local residents have raised urgent alarms about the dangerous and unsanitary conditions inside the private property, which closed its medical operations years ago. The situation highlights a growing dispute over responsibility for securing derelict urban buildings. Visible from the street, the clinic’s deterioration is extensive. Discarded furniture, mattresses, medical gurneys, and what appears to be an old incubator litter the area. Open doors reveal further disarray, including unused oxygen tanks and possible surgical waste. Neighbors…
Panamanian legislator Ernesto Cedeño has voiced strong concerns about potential reforms to the nation’s public contracting system. His warning comes as the administration of President José Raúl Mulino prepares to propose modifications to the Public Procurement Law. Cedeño, who represents circuit 8-4, argued that some technical recommendations under consideration could dismantle years of progress. He acknowledged Mulino’s call for debate as necessary but urged extreme caution. The lawmaker traced the system’s evolution from 1985 through major reforms in 1995 and 2002, noting each step aimed to improve transparency and efficiency. “Unfortunately, some advisors have told, as I understood it, President…
Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino publicly distanced his administration from sanctioned businessman Ramon Carretero Napolitano during a press conference on Thursday. Mulino stated his government maintains no direct or indirect relationship with Carretero, who was added to a US sanctions list in December for alleged ties to Venezuela’s government.The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Carretero on December 11. Officials included him on the so-called Clinton List alongside three nephews of Cilia Flores, the wife of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, and six shipping companies. The action freezes any US assets belonging to the individuals…
The 2025 academic year in Panama officially ends this Friday, December 19. The nation’s Ministry of Education confirmed the date while awaiting final statistics on student performance and dropout rates.Official data on how many students failed subjects, dropped out, or advanced to the next grade will only be available after school directors complete their year-end reports. This annual review process provides the definitive picture of the educational landscape. Preliminary figures from the second trimester, however, have already revealed an unexpected trend in subject performance.Authorities noted that students are struggling not just in traditionally tough sciences but in social studies courses…
The Dr. Rafael Estévez Hospital in Aguadulce has initiated its first coronary angiography service. This new diagnostic capability, launched by the Caja de Seguro Social (CSS), represents a major advancement for cardiac care in Panama’s central provinces.Patients with suspected heart conditions no longer face mandatory transfers to Panama City for specialized evaluation. The local availability of this procedure dramatically improves access to critical care and speeds up treatment for individuals experiencing chest pain and other high-risk cardiovascular symptoms.Transforming Cardiac Diagnosis and CareA coronary angiography is a vital diagnostic tool. It allows cardiologists to visualize blockages within the heart’s arteries and…
The public transport operator MiBus has launched a special recruitment call for women aged 25 and over in Panama City. The company seeks new electric bus drivers and maintenance staff as it prepares to expand its fleet. This initiative aims to strengthen female participation in a sector traditionally dominated by men.Company officials said the drive responds directly to the imminent arrival of a new fleet of electric buses. The modernization effort creates immediate job opportunities for women interested in joining the city’s transit modernization. MiBus currently employs about 300 women as bus operators, a number it hopes to significantly increase…