The challenge for the relationship between Panama and Europe is to look beyond the issue of fiscal transparency, in order to advance together in commercial, digital and environmental issues.

After Panama was included in the European Union’s list of non-cooperating countries in fiscal matters in December 2017, in March 2019 it was reported that in the new version, the Central American country had already disappeared.

In recent years, it seems that the relationship between Europe and Panama has been reduced to grey lists. Chris Hoornaert, ambassador of the European Union in Panama, told Martesfinanciero.com that “… Many people still believe that the only point of confluence between the continent and the isthmus are the grey lists. This is not the case because the cooperation of the community made up of 28 European countries is moving towards joint work on economic, digital and environmental issues, and the development of new services.”

Hoornaert added that they are going to “… develop a 2020 project to help do business with industries such as fishing and agriculture, so that companies can get the most out of them and cope with climatic variations or incorporate technology into their production processes and offer food for export.”

According to the diplomat, for Panama to take full advantage of opportunities with the European Union, it must make efforts to manufacture finished products and not just raw materials.