Presidential republic
Official:
Republic of Panama
Local name:
Panamá
Region:
Central America
Surface area:
75,420 km²
Capital:
Panama City
Geography
Panama is a country in Central America and forms the narrowest point between the Atlantic and the Caribbean. The land has a total area of 75,420 km² (29,120 mi²) and a total coastline of 2,490 km (1,547.2 mi). This land area is approximately 94% of the area of Maine. Panama is thus the 22nd biggest country in the Americas and in terms of area ranked 119th worldwide. More than half of all residents (69%) live within cities. Every ninth resident lives in Panama City alone.
Panama is comparatively low at an average elevation of 360 meters above sea level. The highest mountain peak (Volcán Barú) is at 3,475 meters. The country has about 70 islands. There are direct national borders with the two neighboring countries Colombia and Costa Rica. The distance between New York City and the Capital Panama City is about 3,570 km (2,218 mi).
On further pages:
Current time in Panama:
00:00
March 2024
The countrywide time in Panama is Eastern Standard Time (EST), with no time difference to New York.
As in many countries, there is no daylight savings time in Panama.
Related to Greenwich Mean Time, there's the same difference of -5 hours all over the year.
Population
Population:4,409,000
Population per km²:58.45
Life expectancy males:Ø 73.1 years
Birth rate:
17.7 ‰
Death rate:
6.1 ‰
Males/Females:
50.0% : 50.0%
Population pyramid
The currency in Panama is the Panamanian balboa (PAB).
1 Balboa is divided into 100 Centesimos.
Status: 03/05/2024
1 US dollar = 1.00 Balboas
1 Balboa = 1.00 US dollar
In addition, the U.S. dollar is maintained as a secondary currency parallel to the official national currency.
Climate in Panama
In Panama, as in all equatorial countries, there is a tropical climate. Unlike in Europe or the USA, there is almost no difference between the seasons. The daylight hours vary little, and the temperature differences between summer and winter are also lower. Depending on the season, the average daytime temperatures range between 29 and 32 degrees. In the colder months, and depending in the region, the temperature drops to 22 °C in a month's average.
Average daytime and nighttime temperatures
Languages
Official languages:
Spanish, English
| Mother tongue | Distribution |
|---|---|
| Spanish | 69.2 % |
| English | 13.4 % |
| Creole-English | 8.2 % |
| Guaymí | 5.3 % |
| Cuna | 2.0 % |
| Embera | 0.6 % |
| other | 1.3 % |
Religions
| Religion | Distribution |
|---|---|
| Roman Catholics | 80.6% |
| Protestants | 10.4% |
| nondenominational | 7.7% |
| other | 1.3% |
Economy
| GDP: | 76.52 bn $ |
| Exportations: | 36,144.9 M $ |
| Importations: | 35,692.3 M $ |
| › Tourism receipts: | 3.61 bn $ |
| Debt rate: | 54.89 % |
| › Unemployment rate: | 8.79 % |
| › Inflation rate: | 2.86 % |
| › Corruption index: | 36 (bad) |
| › Energy consumption: | 10.8 bn kWh |
According to the definition from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Panama is a developing country because of its lower economic performance. With a Human Development Index (HDI) of 0.805, Panama counts as one of the high developed economies by UN definition.
With an average annual income of 16,960 USD Panama is one of the high-income countries.
Panama is sometimes referred to as a tax haven.
Land use
| 4% Urban areas: | 2,892 km² |
| 30% Agricultural areas: | 22,898 km² |
| 57% Forest: | 42,846 km² |
| 1% Water areas: | 1,080 km² |
| 9% Others: | 6,784 km² |
Transport
| Railways: | 77 km |
| Waterways: | 800 km |
| Reg. vehicles: | 939,000 |
| › Airports: |
Most important cities
Population refers to the city proper, not metropolitan areas.
| City | Region | Population |
|---|---|---|
| Panama City / Capital | Panamá | 506,000 |
| San Miguelito | Panamá | 393,000 |
| Tocumen | Panamá | 89,000 |
| David | Chiriquí | 83,000 |
| Arraiján | Panamá | 77,000 |
| Las Cumbres | Panamá | 69,000 |
| La Chorrera | Panamá | 61,000 |
| Pacora | Panamá | 56,000 |
| Santiago de Veraguas | Veraguas | 45,000 |
| Colón | Colón | 44,000 |
| Chitré | Herrera | 44,000 |
| Cativá | Colón | 30,000 |
| Changuinola | Bocas del Toro | 23,000 |
| Puerto Armuelles | Chiriquí | 19,000 |
| Aguadulce | Coclé | 17,000 |
| La Concepción | Chiriquí | 17,000 |
| Pedregal | Chiriquí | 16,000 |
| Bocas del Toro | Bocas del Toro | 13,000 |
| Penonomé | Coclé | 12,000 |
| Unión Chocó | Emberá | 9,500 |
| Las Tablas | Los Santos | 8,600 |
| La Palma | Darién | 1,800 |
| El Porvenir | Guna Yala | 10 |
The difference between the urban area and the city proper alone can be considerable. Panama City, for example, has an urban population of 1,166,000. However, the actual proper city is much smaller with only 506,000 inhabitants. The difference to metropolitan regions, i.e. conurbations with several cities, is even greater.
Political indicators
(Based on the "Worldwide Governance Indicators" project of the World Bank)
| Political stability: | ◈ |
| Rule of law: | ◈ |
| Effectivity: | ◈ |
| Regulatory quality: | ◈ |
| Voice accountability: | ◈ |
| Democratic values: | ◈ |
| Death penalty: | abolished in 1922 |
Existing trade agreements
Alliances
Country comparison: Panama / United StatesThe United States of America and Panama compared: demography, Economy, energy, languages and further dimensions.
Colombia: country data and statisticsColombia in numbers: demographics, economy, energy, climate and more data and comparisons with other countries.
List of 152 developing countriesList of all 152 developing countries with below-average living standards
