An Introduction to Panama
The Republic of Panama forms the isthmus - the narrowest point - between the North and South American continents. Settled by the Spanish in the 16th century, it broke away to join the Republic of Gran Colombia in 1821, and seceded from Colombia in 1903 with US help, allowing the Panama Canal to be built by the US Army Corps of Engineers between 1904 and 1914. The strip of land around the canal was owned by the US until the end of the 20th century. See full country profile.Latest Research News from Latin America
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GOVERNMENT: presidential constitutional republic
AREA: 75,420 sq km
POPULATION: 3,460,462 (2011 est.)
MAJOR LANGUAGE: Official Language: Spanish
Some business and general info
The Market Research Industry
Trade and Industry in Panama
The so-called Darien Gap is the section of jungle between the Canal and Colombia and is the only break in the Pan-American Highway, which otherwise forms a complete road from Alaska to Patagonia. It's also where 'Stout Cortez' stands and stares at the Pacific in Keats' On First Looking into Chapman's Homer, arguably the greatest few lines of verse ever writ...
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The Republic of Panama forms the isthmus - the narrowest point - between the North and South American continents. Settled by the Spanish in the 16th century, it broke away to join the Republic of Gran Colombia in 1821, and seceded from Colombia in 1903 with US help, allowing the Panama Canal to be built by the US Army Corps of Engineers between 1904 and 1914. The strip of land around the canal was owned by the US until the end of the 20th century.
Panama itself was dominated by an oligarchy until the 1960s, then by the military. Since the dictatorship of General Noriega in the 1980s, culminating in US invasion, the country has returned to more democratic ways, successfully completing four peaceful transfers of power to opposing political factions.Thanks partly to income from the canal, the country's economy is competitive and fast-growing by Central American standards.
GDP: $48.8bn (2011 est.); $12,615 per capita
Religions Religion: Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant 15%
Currency: Panamanian Balboa - 1 PAB = $US 1.03
Telephone Code: +507
Panama's economy is firmly based on services, which account for 75% of the country's GDP. A large part of this is in turn based on the operation of the Panama Canal and associated services such as logistics, insurance, container ports and flagship registry. Other services are banking and finance associated with the Colon Free Trade Zone and tourism. The canal is currently being widened and deepened and this project should finish in 2014 at a cost of $5.3bn. Panama's economy continued to grow in 2011.
Despite the strong infrastructure, solid economy and low unemployment, 30% of Panamanians live in poverty. The government is making s'renuous efforts to redress this (unemployment dropped from 12% to 3% in 2011). The government is also 'cleaning up' Panama's financial act by seeking removal from the OED's gray list of tax havens, and signing international taxation treaties.
Exports (precisely matching imports of $13.22bn in 2011) include: gold, bananas, shrimp, sugar, iron and steel waste, pineapple and watermelons. These are mainly going to the US (39%), the Netherlands (11%), Costa Rica (6%), Sweden (5%), the UK 5%), Spain (5%), Taiwan (4%) and China 4%). Panama imports commodities such as: fuel products, medicines, vehicles, iron and steel rods and mobile phones from Japan (25%), China (20%), Singapore 12%), the US (10%), South Korea(9%) and Ecuador(4%).
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