Welcome to the Panama Weekly News Roundup! Here’s the latest.
Rare Spanish Shipwreck From 17th Century Uncovered Off Panama.
This past week, a rare and exciting discovery was made off the shores of Panama. Archeologists, who found a shipwreck in 2011 have now placed where and when it came from. The ship was called the “Encarnacion”, and dates all the way back to 1681. The ship was traversing the Caribbean coast of Panama when it sunk in just 40 feet of water.
The Encarnación gives a rare glimpse of a major shift in world history during the colonial era, says Filipe Castro, a nautical archaeologist at Texas A&M University. “It is the rise of capitalism, imperialism, rationalism, and the middle classes that are going to buy art and consume literature.”
At the time, gold and silver mines in Mexico and Peru fed the ambitions and coffers of Spain’s royal family. To transport the wealth of the New World to Europe, Spanish colonists built fleets of merchant vessels that were escorted by armed galleons and warships, explains Fritz Hanselmann, an underwater archaeologist at Texas State University.
Source: National Geographic
Brazilian-Spanish consortium wins Panama Metro Line 2 contract
Panama has just selected the consortium to construct and develop its second Metro (subway) line. The new subway line is a part of a massive, 4-line project that will connect light rail in Panama City and its suburbs. The contract was awarded to a team of developers from two companies in Spain, and Brazil, and is the final step needed before construction can begin.
Consorcio Linea 2 offered to complete the project at a cost of $1.86 billion, or $189 million more than Consorcio PANAMetro, a Chinese-Spanish consortium that finished third in the process. A consortium consisting of Spanish, Mexican and Peruvian companies, meanwhile, finished runner-up after submitting a $2.08 billion offer.
Consorcio Linea 2 emerged victorious because its bid was closest to the reference price of $1.82 billion and because its technical proposal received the highest score. The contract for the construction of the Panama Metro’s Line 2 consists of design engineering services and the construction of civil works, ancillary installations and stations.
Source: Fox News Latino
Panama City Seeks to Become a “SMART CITY”
Panama City is growing faster than ever, and in doing so, the local government is working hard at trying to make sure it develops efficiently and technologically sound. This means that as the city grows, it also needs significant technological upgrades. The goal now, which is critical, is to implement new technology seamlessly throughout the city to convert it into what’s known as a “smart city”, and therefore making it a more efficient place to live, visit, and work.
According to information published by Capital Financiero website, it’s all about trying to put technological development to serve the people. For this, the possibilities for Panama City are endless. On one hand, technology in the prison system would reduce the cost of keeping misdemeanor perpetrators behind bars without losing control of them.
In terms of security, there are applications that allow citizens to monitor traffic, traveling in Metrobus and Subway, so you can decide where to move. According to the General Administrator of the National Authority for Government Innovation (AIG), Irvin Halman, underground fiber optics will allow the capital to become a smart city, because it could give the interoperability and interconnection between different agencies or entities.
Source: GoGetIt Panama
5 ways Panama will Improve Over the Next 5 Years
If you’ve been to Panama, or even read about it in the past few years, you know that the country and capital city have made major strides in improvement. But what does the future have in store? What are some of the plans to keep positive growth, and increase quality of life for both the residents and visitors? In one of our latest blog posts, we go over 5 of the most important ways Panama will improve over the next 5 years.
1. Infrastructure improvement
Panama has been growing so fast, that the idea of new everything (roads, buildings, cinta costera), especially in the capital, has become the norm. But Panama is working just as hard at renovating and enhancing its current infrastructure to match new construction. This includes 5-year plans for highway expansion, bridge expansion/renovation, and the continued restoration of the old city to preserve its 100+ year-old architecture.
Read more about how Panama will improve over the next 5 years
