Panama

From Imakoopedia

Panama is a country in Central America with coastlines on both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, with Colombia to the southeast and Costa Rica to the northwest.

Panama is strategically location on the eastern end of isthmus that forms the land bridge connecting North and South America. It controls the Panama Canal that links North Atlantic Ocean via Caribbean Sea with North Pacific Ocean.

Table of contents

1 Regions 2 Cities 2.1 Ports and harbors 3 Other destinations 4 Understand 4.1 Climate 4.2 Terrain 4.3 History 5 Get in 5.1 By plane 5.2 By train 5.3 By car 5.4 By bus 5.5 By boat 6 Get around 7 Talk 8 Buy 9 Eat 10 Drink 11 Sleep 12 Learn 13 Work 14 Stay safe 15 Stay healthy 16 Respect 17 Contact 18 External links 19 Geography 20 People 21 Government 22 Economy 23 Communications 24 Transportation 25 Transnational Issues

Regions

Administrative divisions 

9 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 territory* (comarca); Bocas del Toro, Chiriqui, Cocle, Colon, Darien, Herrera, Los Santos, Panama, San Blas*, and Veraguas

Cities

• Panama - Capital

Ports and harbors

• Balboa
• Cristobal
• Coco Solo
• Manzanillo - (part of Colon area)
• Vacamonte

Other destinations

Understand

Climate

Tropical maritime; hot, humid, cloudy; prolonged rainy season (May to January), short dry season (January to May)

Natural hazards 

occasional severe storms and forest fires in the Darien area.

Terrain

Interior mostly steep, rugged mountains and dissected, upland plains; coastal areas largely plains and rolling hills

Highest point 

Volcan de Chiriqui 3,475 m

History

Independence 

3 November 1903 (from Colombia; became independent from Spain 28 November 1821)

National holiday 

Independence Day, 3 November (1903)

With US backing, Panama seceded from Colombia in 1903 and promptly signed a treaty with the US allowing for the construction of a canal and US sovereignty over a strip of land on either side of the structure (the Panama Canal Zone). The Panama Canal was built by the US Army Corps of Engineers between 1904 and 1914.

Constitution 

11 October 1972; major reforms adopted 1978, 1983 and 1994

On 7 September 1977, an agreement was signed for the complete transfer of the Canal from the US to Panama by the end of 1999. Certain portions of the Zone and increasing responsibility over the Canal were turned over in the intervening years. With US help, dictator Manuel NORIEGA was deposed in 1989. The entire Panama Canal, the area supporting the Canal, and remaining US military bases were turned over to Panama by or on 31 December 1999.

Get in

By plane

By train

By car

By bus

By boat

Get around

Talk

Languages 

Spanish (official), English 14%
note: many Panamanians bilingual

Buy

Eat

Drink

Sleep

Learn

Work

Stay safe

Stay healthy

Respect

Contact

External links

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Geography

Geographic coordinates 

9 00 N, 80 00 W

Area 

total: 78,200 sq km
water: 2,210 sq km
land: 75,990 sq km

Area - comparative 

slightly smaller than South Carolina

Coastline 

2,490 km

Maritime claims 

contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM

Natural resources 

copper, mahogany forests, shrimp, hydropower

Land use 

arable land: 6.72%
permanent crops: 2.08%
other: 91.2% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land 

320 sq km (1998 est.)

Environment - current issues 

water pollution from agricultural runoff threatens fishery resources; deforestation of tropical rain forest; land degradation and soil erosion threatens siltation of Panama Canal; air pollution in urban areas; mining threatens natural resources

People

Population 

2,882,329 (July 2002 est.)

Age structure 

0-14 years: 29.6% (male 433,494; female 418,120)
15-64 years: 64.3% (male 939,550; female 914,646)
65 years and over: 6.1% (male 84,130; female 92,389) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate 

1.26% (2002 est.)

Birth rate 

18.6 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate 

4.96 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate 

-1.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Sex ratio 

at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate 

19.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth 

total population: 75.89 years
female: 78.74 years (2002 est.)
male: 73.14 years

Total fertility rate 

2.22 children born/woman (2002 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate 

1.54% (1999 est.)

Nationality 

noun: Panamanian(s)
adjective: Panamanian

Ethnic groups 

mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 70%, Amerindian and mixed (West Indian) 14%, white 10%, Amerindian 6%

Religions 

Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant 15%

Literacy 

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 90.8%
male: 91.4%
female: 90.2% (1995 est.)

Government

Country name 

conventional long form: Republic of Panama
conventional short form: Panama
local short form: Panama
local long form: Republica de Panama

Government type 

constitutional democracy

Legal system 

based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Justice; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage 

18 years of age; universal and compulsory

Flag description 

divided into four, equal rectangles; the top quadrants are white (hoist side) with a blue five-pointed star in the center and plain red; the bottom quadrants are plain blue (hoist side) and white with a red five-pointed star in the center

Economy

Economy - overview 

Panama's economy is based primarily on a well-developed services sector that accounts for three-fourths of GDP. Services include the Panama Canal, banking, the Colon Free Zone, insurance, container ports, flagship registry, and tourism. A slump in Colon Free Zone and agricultural exports, the global slowdown, and the withdrawal of US military forces held back economic growth in 2000-01. The government plans public works programs, tax reforms, and new regional trade agreements in order to stimulate growth.

GDP - composition by sector 

agriculture: 7%
industry: 17%
services: 76% (2000 est.)

Population below poverty line 

37% (1999 est.)

Labor force 

1.1 million
note: shortage of skilled labor, but an oversupply of unskilled labor (2000 est.)

Labor force - by occupation 

agriculture 21%, industry 18%, services 61% (1995 est.)

Unemployment rate 

13% (2000 est.)

Industries 

construction, petroleum refining, brewing, cement and other construction materials, sugar milling

Electricity - production 

4.894 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - production by source 

fossil fuel: 29%
hydro: 69%
other: 1% (2000)
nuclear: 0%

Agriculture - products 

bananas, rice, corn, coffee, sugarcane, vegetables; livestock; shrimp

Exports - commodities 

bananas, shrimp, sugar, coffee, clothing

Imports - commodities 

capital goods, crude oil, foodstuffs, consumer goods, chemicals

Currency 

balboa (PAB); US dollar (USD)

Currency code 

PAB; USD

Exchange rates 

balboas per US dollar - 1.000 (fixed rate)

Fiscal year 

calendar year

Communications

Telephones - main lines in use 

396,000 (1997)

Telephones - mobile cellular 

17,000 (1997)

Telephone system 

general assessment: domestic and international facilities well developed
domestic: NA
international: 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to the Central American Microwave System

Radio broadcast stations 

AM 101, FM 134, shortwave 0 (1998)

Radios 

815,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations 

38 (including repeaters) (1998)

Televisions 

510,000 (1997)

Internet country code 

.pa

Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 

6 (2000)

Internet users 

45,000 (2000)

Transportation

Railways 

total: 355 km
broad gauge: 76 km 1.524-m gauge
narrow gauge: 279 km 0.914-m gauge (2001)

Highways 

total: 11,592 km
paved: 4,079 km (including 30 km of expressways)
unpaved: 7,513 km (2000)

Waterways 

882 km
note: 800 km navigable by shallow draft vessels; 82 km Panama Canal

Pipelines 

crude oil 130 km (2001)

Airports 

107 (2001)

Airports - with paved runways 

total: 41
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 13
under 914 m: 21 (2002)

Airports - with unpaved runways 

total: 62
914 to 1,523 m: 12
under 914 m: 50 (2002)

Transnational Issues

Disputes - international 

none

Illicit drugs 

major cocaine transshipment point and primary money laundering center for narcotics revenue; money-laundering activity is especially heavy in the Colon Free Zone; offshore financial center; negligible signs of coca cultivation; monitoring of financial transactions is improving; official corruption remains a major problem