Panama Travel Podcast with Javier Moreno

Location

Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Colombia and Costa Rica

Terrain

Interior mostly steep, rugged mountains with dissected, upland plains; coastal plains with rolling hills

Climate

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

Elevation

Highest point

Volcan Baru 3,475 m

Lowest point

Pacific Ocean 0 m

Mean elevation

360 m

Area

Total

75,420 sq km

Land

74,340 sq km

Water

1,080 sq km

Size comparison

Slightly smaller than South Carolina

Coastline

2,490 km

Land borders

Total

687 km

Border countries

Colombia 339 km; Costa Rica 348 km

Natural resources

Copper, mahogany forests, shrimp, hydropower

Land use

Agricultural land

29.5% (2023 est.)

Arable land

7.6% (2023 est.)

Permanent crops

1.6% (2023 est.)

Permanent pasture

20.3% (2023 est.)

Forest

62.3% (2023 est.)

Other

8.2% (2023 est.)

Natural hazards

Occasional severe storms and forest fires in the Darien area

Note

Strategic location on eastern end of isthmus forming land bridge that connects North and South America; controls the Panama Canal, which links the North Atlantic Ocean with the North Pacific Ocean via the Caribbean Sea

Population

Total

4,536,008 (2025 est.)

Male

2,284,105

Female

2,251,903

Nationality

Noun

Panamanian(s)

Adjective

Panamanian

Ethnic groups

Mestizo (mixed Indigenous and White) 65%, Indigenous 12.3% (Ngabe 7.6%, Kuna 2.4%, Embera 0.9%, Bugle 0.8%, other 0.4%, unspecified 0.2%), Black or African descent 9.2%, Mulatto 6.8%, White 6.7% (2010 est.)

Languages

Languages

Spanish (official), Indigenous languages (including Ngabere (Guaymi), Buglere, Kuna, Embera, Wounaan, Naso (Teribe), and Bri Bri), Panamanian English Creole (a mixture of English and Spanish with elements of Ngabere, also known as Guari Guari and Colon Creole), English, Chinese (Yue and Hakka), Arabic, French Creole, other (Yiddish, Hebrew, Korean, Japanese)

Major-language sample(s)

La Libreta Informativa del Mundo, la fuente indispensable de información básica. (Spanish)

Religions

Evangelical 55%, Roman Catholic 33.4%, none 10.1%, unspecified 1.5% (2023 est.)

Median age

Total

31.7 years (2025 est.)

Male

31 years

Female

31.9 years

Life expectancy

Total population

79.2 years (2024 est.)

Male

76.4 years

Female

82.2 years

Urbanisation

Urban population

69.5% of total population (2023)

Rate of urbanization

1.92% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Where people live

Population is concentrated towards the center of the country, particularly around the Canal, but a sizeable segment of the populace also lives in the far west around David; the eastern third of the country is sparsely inhabited

Largest cities

1.977 million PANAMA CITY (capital) (2023)

Background

Explored and settled by the Spanish in the 16th century, Panama broke with Spain in 1821 and joined a union of Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela that was named the Republic of Gran Colombia. When the union dissolved in 1830, Panama remained part of Colombia. 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 known as the Panama Canal Zone on either side of the structure. The US Army Corps of Engineers built the Panama Canal between 1904 and 1914. In 1977, an agreement was signed for the complete transfer of the Canal from the US to Panama by the end of the century. Certain portions of the Zone and increasing responsibility over the Canal were turned over in the subsequent decades. With US help, Panamanian dictator Manuel NORIEGA was deposed in 1989. The entire Panama Canal, the area supporting the Canal, and remaining US military bases were transferred to Panama by the end of 1999. An ambitious expansion project to more than double the Canal's capacity by allowing for more Canal transits and larger ships was carried out between 2007 and 2016.

Government

Presidential republic

Capital

Panama City

Time zone

UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

Local name

República de Panama

Independence

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

National day

Independence Day (Separation Day), 3 November (1903)

Overview

Upper middle-income Central American economy; increasing Chinese trade; US dollar user; canal expansion fueling broader infrastructure investment; services sector dominates economy; historic money-laundering and illegal drug hub

GDP per capita

Real GDP per capita 2024

$36,400 (2024 est.)

Real GDP per capita 2023

$35,900 (2023 est.)

Real GDP per capita 2022

$33,800 (2022 est.)

Inflation

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2024

0.7% (2024 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2023

1.5% (2023 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2022

2.9% (2022 est.)

Unemployment

Unemployment rate 2024

6.6% (2024 est.)

Unemployment rate 2023

6.6% (2023 est.)

Unemployment rate 2022

8.1% (2022 est.)

Exchange rate

Currency

Balboas (PAB) per US dollar -

Exchange rates 2024

1 (2024 est.)

Exchange rates 2023

1 (2023 est.)

Exchange rates 2022

1 (2022 est.)

Exchange rates 2021

1 (2021 est.)

Exchange rates 2020

1 (2020 est.)

Main industries

Construction, brewing, cement and other construction materials, sugar milling

Agriculture

Sugarcane, rice, bananas, oranges, oil palm fruit, chicken, plantains, maize, milk, pineapples (2023)

Airports

77 (2025)

Railways

Total

77 km (2014)

Standard gauge

77 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge

Ports

Total ports

12 (2024)

Large

0

Medium

3

Small

3

Very small

5

Size unknown

1

Ports with oil terminals

5

Key ports

Bahia de las Minas, Balboa, Pedregal, Puerto Armuelles, Puerto Colon, Puerto Cristobal

Internet domain

.pa

Internet users

Percent of population 78% (2023 est.)

Mobile subscriptions

Total subscriptions

6.98 million (2023 est.)

Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

157 (2023 est.)

Environmental issues

Water pollution from agricultural runoff; deforestation of tropical rainforest; land degradation and soil erosion in Panama Canal; air pollution in urban areas; effects of mining

Fresh water

139.304 billion cubic meters (2022 est.)