Tewaney had hosted external affairs minister S Jaishankar on Monday on his arrival from Guyana. Jaishankar is on a nine-day official trip to the Latin American countries and the Caribbean.
Panama is India’s largest trade partner in Central America, with bilateral trade reaching $610 million in 2022, according to Tewaney. She played a key role in organising two regional meets for Jaishankar during his stay in Panama City where the leaders brainstormed ideas to enhance India’s business footprints across Central America and Latin America.
“One characteristic of Panama can enable the country to position itself as the entry point for India to the Latin American region: stability,” Tewaney said. “We had the lowest level of inflation in the region at only 2.1% in 2022, and currently have the highest GDP per capita (measured in purchasing power parity terms) in the region, according to the latest figures from the IMF.”
Panama sees the pharmaceuticals sector as a priority area for cooperation with India. “Panama is working with the UNIDO to develop its capacity as a pharmaceutical hub, both boosting domestic pharmaceutical production and leveraging the Panama Canal and the country’s unique market access advantages to get medicines to those who need them,” she said.
Tewaney said Jaishankar had meetings with ministers and officials from six different ministries and departments.
“This week, Panama was the convener for two larger regional groupings: first as the host of the Latin America-India Forum, a business forum that brought together executives from India and the broader Latin American region, and the next day as the meeting point for the SICA-India Ministerial meeting,” she said. “Both meetings were underscored by a sense of optimism and shared interests to deepen cooperation, specifically in four areas: green energy and sustainability, healthcare, digitalisation and industries 4.0, and gender equality.”The Panama Canal handles an estimated 6% of the world’s maritime commerce and is obligated under international law to be neutral, positioning Panama as a unique partner for any country seeking to build stable global supply chains and exports, including India, the minister said, adding, “I was delighted to take Minister Jaishankar to visit the canal. Already, some Indian companies have begun to realize the importance of Panama as a business hub for the Americas. As a result of the increased momentum in the political and economic relationship, we may see more such investments soon.”