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1 1 (October 7, 2021)

handle is hein.crs/govegxw0001 and id is 1 raw text is: U Updated October 7, 2021 Panama: An Overview Panama's central location in the Americas (linking North and South America), large financialsector, use of the U.S. dollar as currency, and transportation infrastructure- especially the Panama Canal, which connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans -make the country a globaltradehub and a strategic partner for the United States. Figure 1. Map of Panama Source: CRS. Political and Economic Environment Current President Laurentino Nito Cortizo of the center- left Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD) won a narrow victory in Panama's May 2019 elections, receiving 33% of the vote in a seven-candidate contest. Cortizo's PRD also won 35 seats in Panama's 71-seat National Assembly;it is working in coalition with the National Republican Liberal Movement(Molirena), which has five seats in the As sembly, providing the government with a majority. Cortizo heads Panama's seventhcivilian government since the December 1989 U.S. military intervention that ousted the military regime of General Manuel Antonio Noriega. The endurance ofelectedcivilian democracy in Panama for more than 30 years is a significant departure fromthe country's his tory of military rule, including the populist rule of General Omar Torrijos (1968-1981) and the increasingly repressive rule ofNoriega (1983-1989). Cortizo succeeded Juan Carlos Varela(2014-2019) of the center-right Panameiista Party. Varela served as vice president during the Ricardo Martinelli administration (2009-2014) and as foreign minis ter for two years until Martinelli fired him, related to Varela's allegations of governmental corruption. Once in office, the Varela administration pursued numerous corruption cases against Martinelli government officials, including Martinelli himself, who was investigated over irregularities in apublic welfare programand illegal wiretapping and pardons. The United States extradited Martinellito Panama in June 2018; in August 2019, he was acquitted of ordering the illegal wiretapping, but this verdict was overturnedin November 2020. A new trial began in July 2021. Like other countries, Panama is contending with the severe public health andeconomic consequences of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Initially, the government's response helped curb the disease's spead, but cases and deaths surged fromNovember 2020 to January 2021 and again fromJune to July 2021. As of October 7,2021, Panama reported 7,255 deaths with a mortality rate of 170 per 100,000 people, the highestin Central America, according to Johns Hopkins University. Panama has reported that almost 54% ofits population was fully vaccinatedas ofOctober 7. The government has purchased vaccines frompharmaceutical companies, received vaccine donations fromthe United States (see below), and has procured some vaccines throughthe COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) Facility, a mechanismdeveloped by globalhealthorganizations to facilitate equitable vaccine distribution. Panama at a Glance Population: 4.279 million (2020,IMF). Area: 29,120 square miles, slightly snller than South Carolina. GDP: $52.9 billion (2020,current prices, IMF est.). Real GDP Growth (% change, constant prices, IMF): 2019, 3.0%; 2020, - 7.9% est.; 2021, I 2.0%, projected. Per Capita GDP: $12,373 (2020, current prices, IMF). Key Trading Partners: U.S. (22.2%), China (12.5%), Mexico (4.9%), Spain (4.2%), and Costa Rica (4.1%) (2020,total trade, Panama National Institute of Statistics). Note: IMF = International Monetary Fund. Panama's services-based economy averaged almost6.9% growth annually from2010 to 2017, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), in large part because of the Panama Canalexpansion and other large infrastructure projects, such as a metro systemfor Panama City; a third bridge over the canal; and expansion ofthe country's airports, roads, and highways. The Panama Canal expansion was completed in 2016 and included adding a new set of locks and channels, which doubled the canal's capacity and allowed it to accommodate giant container cargo ships. Economic growth slowed to 3.6% in 2018 and 3% in 2019 but was still among the highestin the region. Due to the pandemic, the IMF estimates the economy contracted almost 18% in 2020 but forecasts that growth will reach 12% in 2021. Increasedmining and a metro systemexpansion are contributing to economic growth. Before the pandemic, Panama's strong growth and targeted socialprograms contributed to poverty reduction, although poverty remained higher in rural areas, particularly among Indigenous people. According to the World Bank, the pandemic led to an increased poverty rate of 14.9% in 2020,

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