Weekly Report - 25 February 2016 (WR-16-08)

PANAMA | Dell Global Command Center. On 23 February representatives from US computer manufacturer, Dell Inc., and Panama’s industry & trade minister, Augusto Arosemena, attended the formal opening of the firm’s new Global Command Center in Panama City.
The new US$1.2m Global Command Center, Dell’s sixth worldwide, will provide support services for Dell’s customers in the entire Latin American and Caribbean region, where Dell, the world’s third largest computer manufacturer, has a presence in 42 countries and territories.
The new facilities were hailed by Arosemena as putting Panama at the forefront of the global information technology (IT) business, providing a boost for the domestic economy that could have a “multiplier effect” in attracting foreign investment in the country.
“This represents the level of trust that Panama inspires in investors,” Arosemena said, noting that Dell’s operations in Panama began 13 years ago “with 500 workers in a call centre, and today it has 2,000 employees, 98% of which are Panamanian, who offer value added services”.