Lorena Castillo de Varela, First Lady of Panama and Honorary President of the Panamanian Red Cross, recently visited the offices of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) in Geneva, Switzerland, where she expressed Panama’s interest in establishing a regional humanitarian logistics hub.

During her visit, the First Lady met with several IFRC leaders, including Chief of Staff Jagan Chapagain, who stated that this key initiative is a subject of discussion and that a regional humanitarian logistics hub would serve to provide timelier aid as required.

The First Lady stated that this initiative would be important to boost the support that the Red Cross provides at an international scale, creating quicker and more opportune responses to emergencies in the region and saving more lives.

Mr. Chapagain pointed out that the First Lady’s work has frequently been tied to humanitarian causes for many years now, which makes her designation as Honorary President of the Panamanian Red Cross a natural fit.