LatinNews Daily - 25 October 2022

* Panama’s economy & finance (MEF) minister, Héctor Alexander, has presented modifications to the government’s proposed 2023 budget which, unveiled in July, was for US$27.16bn – up from the US$25.58bn that was approved for 2022. With the modifications, the proposed budget would increase by US$416.5m to US$27.28bn. According to the MEF, the increases would be distributed as follows: US$320m to development of social services; US$26m to environmental and technological development, US$105m to infrastructure development, US$48m to development and promotion of production, and US$54m to “general services”. Panama’s leading business lobby Cámara de Comercio, Industrias y Agricultura de Panamá (CCIAP) had already raised concerns about the increase in spending under the initial proposal which the government led by President Laurentino Cortizo had justified in terms of the need to cover the results of the negotiations it was holding with protest groups over soaring living costs. CCIAP had complained that a significant part of the increase was earmarked for pensions, public payroll and on extra funds for the legislature, none of which it says reflects the measures of containment and austerity which the government had announced in response to the current crisis.

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