Friday, January 30, 2026.
A Return to the Moon
Outside the norm of my page-turning, I recently looked into the philosphy of François-Marie Arouet known more readily as “Voltaire”, an 18th century, philosopher during a time of Enlightenment. Voltaire consistently argued that:
• excessive emotion clouds judgment
• reason allows distance, perspective, even humor
• tragedy is intensified by unexamined feeling
He is atributed to saying “Life is a tragedy for those who feel, and a comedy for those who think.” (There appears to be just too darn much feeling and not enough thinking.)
Much of what dominates our attention today lies outside our control; public outrage, political division, and the constant demand for reaction. The disciplined mind learns to step back from such noise and focus instead on what is lasting, purposeful, and worthy of effort.
Today, with little fanfare, humanity is preparing to return to the Moon. Not as an exercise in pride, nor as an escape from earthly concerns, but as a deliberate act of exploration and preparation. This modern space program is seldom discussed, yet it reflects a quiet commitment to reason, patience, and progress measured over generations rather than moments.
Exploration undertaken with humility serves a greater good. It requires cooperation, restraint, and acceptance of difficulty, not for applause, but because it is right to advance knowledge and capability where we can. In times marked by polarization, such shared endeavors remind us that common purpose does not require uniform thought.
To lift our gaze upward is not to ignore the world before us, but to gain proper perspective within it. Progress, when guided by reason and responsibility, remains possible. And in choosing to build rather than react, to prepare rather than despair, we affirm a simple truth: duty fulfilled in service of the future is never wasted.
Brett Mikkelson
Director, B.M. Investigations, Inc. – Private Investigations in Panama
TOP NEWS and TIDBITS:
European Commission Tightens Its Visa Policy and Links It to Cooperation on Returns
The European Commission (EC) adopted on Thursday the European Union’s (EU) first-ever visa strategy, which entails stricter conditions for visa issuance and links it to various factors, such as cooperation by third countries on returns and readmissions.
The strategy also envisages the suspension, refusal, or restriction of visas for states that carry out hostile actions undermining EU security, and places strong emphasis on attracting talent and using advanced digital tools for visa management.
“With this strategy, we are putting Europe in order, with stronger borders and more effective returns,” said the European Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration, Magnus Brunner, at a press conference.
One of the pillars of the plan, the Commission explained, is strengthening EU security through stricter oversight of existing visa-free regimes “in order to ensure continued compliance and prevent the misuse of visa-free travel.”
The EU maintains agreements with several countries—including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, the United States, Canada, Japan, and South Korea—allowing their nationals to travel to the Schengen area without requiring a visa.
The strategy also foresees amendments to Article 25a, which links visa policy to third-country cooperation on the readmission of irregular migrants, enabling the EU to adopt specific measures in cases of insufficient cooperation on returns and readmissions.
Among these possible targeted restrictive measures are “the suspension, refusal, or restriction of visa applications in response to hostile actions by third countries that undermine EU security,” as well as the introduction of new measures to strengthen the security of travel documents in order to combat fraud.
The strategy is also aimed at adopting new measures to attract and retain talent, making what the EC described as “legitimate travel” “easier, faster, and more predictable for tourists and business travelers.”
Some of these measures include new digital procedures, such as the simplification and partial automation of pre-departure checks for visa-exempt travelers starting in the fourth quarter of 2026, the creation of multiple-entry visas, and improved conditions for talent, including the consideration of new legal frameworks for entrepreneurs, professors, and students.
Moody’s: This Is the Year When Panama’s Credit Rating Is Decided—Either It Moves to Stable or Is Downgraded
In an exclusive interview, Jaime Reusche, the new lead analyst for Panama’s rating, speaks about expectations, what has been done right, and the important role the National Assembly will play.
“We do not believe there is any reason to go beyond this year to determine whether Panama remains investment grade with a stable outlook or loses its investment-grade status and is downgraded,” said Jaime Reusche, the new lead analyst for Panama’s rating at Moody’s.
When Panama managed to maintain its investment-grade rating of Baa3 at Moody’s Ratings last November, the sense of relief was evident. The decision came at a time of high fiscal tension, with a deficit that had widened significantly in 2024. Although efforts were made in 2025, they were not sufficient to fully resolve the situation. The rating was maintained, but with a clear warning: the negative outlook remained in place and needed to be addressed.
That definition will come this year. And it does not depend solely on the Executive Branch; according to the rating agency, the National Assembly will play an important role.
The person now directly responsible for evaluating Panama is Jaime Reusche, an analyst with more than a decade at Moody’s, who recently assumed leadership of the country’s sovereign rating as part of a regular rotation process required by the U.S. regulator. He replaced Renzo Merino, who had covered Panama for 11 years. “The U.S. regulator always requires these responsibilities to be rotated from time to time to have fresh eyes looking at a country,” Reusche explained in an exclusive interview with SNIP Noticias from New York.
Moody’s sees clear progress, but also a test that has yet to be fully passed: the country’s ability to act as an investment-grade sovereign when facing fiscal stress.
Panama’s fiscal deficit declined from 7.3% to an estimated 4.4% in 2025, slightly higher than the government’s own projection of 4%. “In a single year, that is a notable fiscal effort,” Reusche said, adding that Moody’s had already seen indications that the deficit was heading toward that level.
“And that is why, in the November decision, we chose to maintain the Baa3 investment-grade rating but with a negative outlook that has not yet been resolved, because based on what we have seen, we recognize the fiscal effort made in 2025, but we believe that some structural measures are still missing to resolve that outlook,” he explained.
During the interview, Reusche was emphatic about separating roles. Moody’s does not recommend public policies; it evaluates behavior. What it expects from Panama is that it behaves like an investment-grade country. “The way we evaluate countries globally is that an investment-grade country typically faces these challenges by bringing together the political class and the different branches of government to adopt measures that can address their fiscal challenges.”
The starting point, he acknowledged, is better than a year ago. After a marked slowdown in 2024, when growth fell to 2.7%, the economy returned in 2025 to a rate closer to its historical pattern. “We estimate that it returned to that growth rate so characteristic of Panama, closer to 4%, and that undoubtedly gave some breathing room to the fiscal accounts.”
More than strict compliance with a specific figure, what matters is the trajectory. “Beyond the specific result, what we emphasize is the path of fiscal consolidation, because whether or not the rule is met exactly, as long as there is progress toward reducing the deficit, that is more valuable than meeting a single number.”
Even so, that path must be carefully assessed. Reusche warned that consolidation driven mainly by cyclical recovery does not guarantee sustainability. “If much of the consolidation comes from a cyclical recovery, nothing guarantees that in the future, when there is an economic slowdown, you won’t see a deviation of this magnitude again.” That is why, he stressed, structure matters. “The way, the structure through which fiscal accounts are consolidated is important.”
This explains why Moody’s opted in November to maintain the rating without closing the assessment. “We were not yet at the point where we could issue a conclusion about the quality of this fiscal deficit reduction,” he said. This year, however, the agency expects to have more elements.
In its assessment, the lead analyst for Panama’s rating also acknowledged improvements in fiscal management since the current administration took office in mid-2024. Moody’s highlights the consolidation effort achieved in 2025 and notes that “the measures adopted by the government to control spending have undoubtedly delivered good results.” Reusche emphasized that this represents “a notable fiscal effort” and recognized the Executive’s willingness to “spend some political capital” to address structural issues that had been postponed for years.
A key actor in defining the rating: the National Assembly
One critical issue is the government’s limited flexibility in managing its budget, due to special laws such as subsidies and automatic increases, or mandatory percentages allocated to health or education. Economy and Finance Minister Felipe Chapman has already told SNIP Noticias that draft proposals to introduce changes are being prepared.
Moody’s is now waiting to see how these initiatives progress. While the government has shown willingness to move forward with complex adjustments, the agency is closely watching how these proposals are processed institutionally. “More than anything, we are watching how the Assembly responds—not so much the government—to the measures the government is proposing to anchor the fiscal deficit and the medium-term deficit reduction path,” Reusche said.
For the rating agency, this institutional behavior is decisive. “The behavior of an investment-grade country typically involves adopting structural, forceful, and comprehensive measures, with broad political consensus for their implementation, when facing fiscal difficulty, as Panama is now.” The condition is clear: “So that these measures are not adopted for one year and then reversed under another government, but instead become state policies.”
Reusche insisted that this is not about improvisation. “Adopting well-designed, well-articulated, and well-studied state policies, because taking measures recklessly typically does not deliver the results one would expect.” He acknowledged the political costs. “These are difficult measures; they are not popular. When belts have to be tightened, the population naturally resists them, but sometimes this is the medicine that must be taken to maintain investment-grade status and a sustainable fiscal consolidation trajectory.”
Alongside these demands, Moody’s also underscored the strengths that continue to support the country’s credit profile. Panama maintains high income levels, growth potential above that of comparable economies, and an “extremely dynamic” private sector. Added to this are dollarization, which reduces the risk of financial crises, and macro-financial supervision that the agency considers solid.
“We believe in the economy’s growth potential, which will help this deficit-reduction process not only this year but in future years,” Reusche said, adding that these strengths have not disappeared.
The weaknesses, however, are clearly identified. The main one remains fiscal. Moody’s points to growing expenditure rigidity, exacerbated by mandated minimums in areas such as education, health, or pensions without permanent revenues to support them. “When you do not have permanent revenues to finance those expenditures, you have a mismatch,” he explained.
This is compounded by the burden of debt service. “A lot is being spent on interest payments, which reduces fiscal space in a context where revenues are quite low for a country with Panama’s income level.”
On the revenue side, the agency views with interest the government’s willingness to tackle long-standing issues of tax evasion and avoidance. “We recognize the willingness of this government and the minister to address the issue,” Reusche said, while clarifying that the analysis will focus on the concrete measures adopted and their effective implementation.
Improved investor confidence and a positive move by staying out of the markets
In parallel, Moody’s perceives an improvement in investor confidence. The government’s and the economy minister’s decision to stay out of international capital markets has been well received. “Foreign investors are missing Panama,” Reusche commented. That absence, far from raising alarm, has been interpreted as a sign of diversification in financing sources.
The recent issuance of a bond backed by the World Bank reinforced that perception. “It has been very well received by investors because there is less risk in that type of operation, and it is positive for the country,” he explained, noting that it allowed Panama to secure interest rates that would not have been possible without that guarantee.
When will the rating be resolved?
All these factors lead to a central conclusion: the negative outlook must be resolved this year. “Our intention is to resolve that negative outlook this year,” Reusche stated. The timing is flexible, but the deadline is not. “We do not believe there is any reason to go beyond this year to determine whether Panama remains investment grade with a stable outlook or loses its investment-grade status.”
Reviews can take place at any time, although Moody’s typically does not allow more than six months to pass without issuing an opinion.
Reusche explained that while reviews are often conducted every six months, the process is not rigidly tied to that schedule. In that context, April appears as an initial reference point following the November decision, but not necessarily the definitive moment. “It may be that in April we say everything remains the same and that we still need a bit more time to study the issue,” he said. The resolution may come at any point thereafter, but the deadline is clear: “The idea is that it does not go beyond November of this year,” meaning that before year-end the agency must decide whether Panama stabilizes its investment-grade rating or loses that status.
Thus, 2026 is shaping up to be a decisive year. Panama has shown an ability to adjust and retains relevant structural strengths. But for Moody’s, the definitive test lies not only in the numbers, but in the country’s ability to act in a coordinated manner, with broad political consensus and decisions that transcend a single government term.
Panama’s Commitment to Nature: A Model for Environmental Conservation
Panama’s Commitment to Nature, launched during the high-level segment of the UN General Assembly in New York in September 2025, is the country’s first national strategy to comprehensively address climate change, desertification, and biodiversity loss.
Rather than making separate commitments under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the initiative brings them together into a single roadmap to improve synergies and implementation across these multilateral forums.
In terms of coastal wetland conservation, Panama committed to restoring 100,000 hectares of forest nationwide, including 2,500 hectares of mangroves, representing a 3.6% increase in carbon absorption capacity by 2035.
In addition, the country plans to fully map its seagrass meadows and reefs by 2028 and to update the national wetlands inventory with a focus on coastal ecosystems by 2030.
According to the humanitarian organization The Pew Charitable Trusts, these ecosystems are critical because they function as nurseries for commercially important fish and shellfish, promote biodiversity, reduce coastal erosion, and act as natural filters that remove pollutants before they reach other marine habitats.
Their role as carbon sinks is also highlighted, with a sequestration capacity greater than that of most terrestrial ecosystems.
Panama’s commitments are aligned with its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), submitted to the UNFCCC in 2025.
The national coordinator of MarAlliance in Panama, Andrés Fraiz, told EFE that the innovative nature of the commitment lies in its inclusive approach.
“It breaks away from the traditional model of environmental commitments, which are often sector-based and involve limited social participation,” by integrating rural communities, Indigenous peoples, women, youth, the private sector, and academia into decision-making processes.
Fraiz emphasized that the restoration of forests and mangroves will generate social, environmental, and climate benefits by strengthening artisanal fisheries, improving food security, and reducing risks associated with floods and storms.
“Integrating mangroves and other coastal wetlands into national planning not only strengthens Panama’s climate action, but also sends a clear signal to the region that conservation can translate into smarter and more sustainable economic, social, and risk-management decisions,” Fraiz warned.
He added that forest restoration could capture around 10 million tons of carbon dioxide over the coming decades and recalled that Panama hosts nearly 30% of Central America’s mangroves, giving the country a strategic regional responsibility.
Panama Bets on Nature
From an institutional perspective, Melani Acosta, an environmental analyst at Panama’s Ministry of Environment, explained to EFE that the Commitment to Nature makes it possible to align climate, biodiversity, and land-use agendas under a single framework of priorities, governance, and indicators.
“The novelty is not just the document, but the approach: defining actions that generate simultaneous benefits,” she noted.
Meanwhile, Debbra Cisneros, also an environmental analyst at the Ministry of Environment, highlighted that the initiative facilitates the shift from fragmented commitments to concrete public policy decisions by prioritizing territories, guiding investments, and aligning international cooperation.
She concluded that “the difference lies not only in environmental ambition, but in using nature as the structural axis of climate action and development.”
Both specialists agreed that mangroves are not merely marine ecosystems, but key assets for climate action, biodiversity conservation, and the country’s resilience.
Authorities Highlight Investment and Job Opportunities at International Economic Forum
With a strong emphasis on regional integration, political dialogue, and investment attraction, the two days of the International Economic Forum Latin America and the Caribbean 2026 concluded in Panama, bringing together business leaders, heads of state, and representatives of multilateral organizations.
During the meeting, which positioned the country as the epicenter of regional discussion, the main focus centered on the need to strengthen Latin American integration through consensus-building, dialogue, and the identification of economic similarities that can help reduce long-standing barriers to growth, such as inequality and low productivity.
The Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carlos Hoyos, described the forum’s development as “spectacular” and highlighted the significance of the presence of eight heads of state—seven sitting presidents and Chile’s president-elect—which, he said, helped reactivate spaces for productive dialogue in the region.
“This forum has served as a platform for Latin America to once again have spaces for the joint construction of shared interests. There was discussion about acting as a bloc, promoting best practices, improving productivity, reducing poverty, and generating investment,” Hoyos noted, also highlighting the numerous meetings held with international delegations.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Economy and Finance, Felipe Chapman, indicated that during the forum several participants praised Panama’s potential and economic outlook, while various companies expressed interest in establishing operations in the country.
“What we ask for is that jobs be created, and that they be well paid, and that is what we are working on,” the economy minister stated.
The authorities agreed that the International Economic Forum Latin America and the Caribbean will not be a one-off event, but rather a long-term state initiative to be sustained over time, with the support of CAF and the continuity of future administrations, serving as a permanent platform for regional integration and development.
Panama Canal Prepares Tender Processes for Port Terminals and Gas Pipeline
The Minister for Canal Affairs and Secretary of Goals, José Ramón Icaza, reported that preparations are underway for the tender processes for two new port terminals near the Panama Canal, as well as for other strategic projects, including a pipeline for the transport of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).
According to Icaza, work is currently focused on the prequalification process, which will determine which companies will be eligible to formally participate in the tenders. The launch of this stage is expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
The minister explained that these projects are part of the Panama Canal’s strategic plan for the 2025–2035 period, developed over the past 18 months, from which key initiatives have emerged to strengthen the country’s logistics platform.
Among the projects under consideration are new port terminals on the Pacific side, specifically in Corozal, and on the Atlantic side, in the Telfers area. The plan also includes the construction of a pipeline along the western bank of the Panama Canal for the transport of petrochemical products, particularly LPG.
Icaza also mentioned the construction of a highway or logistics corridor on the western bank of the Canal, as well as the extension of the logistics corridor to fully connect both sides of the canal zone. In addition, the development of the Río Indio project is included.
“Regarding the tenders for the port terminals and the pipeline, in the coming weeks we will be announcing the start of the prequalification process, and then move forward with inviting companies to participate in the bidding. We expect this entire process to be completed in 2026,” the minister stated.
Icaza’s remarks were made in response to questions about the projects and tenders currently being managed by the Panama Canal Authority for new infrastructure linked to the interoceanic waterway, during his participation in the International Economic Forum for Latin America and the Caribbean.
Heat and UV Radiation: MINSA Provides Key Tips to Protect Your Skin in Summer
With the start of the summer season and the increase in ultraviolet (UV) radiation, the Ministry of Health (MINSA) reiterated its call for the public to avoid prolonged sun exposure, as it can cause skin burns, eye damage, and skin cancer.
The head of the Dermatology Service at Santo Tomás Hospital, Reynaldo Arosemena, warned that the increase in UV rays during this time of year makes it essential to adopt daily protective measures.
“It is essential to protect yourself from excessive sun exposure. It is recommended to use sunscreen from the moment you leave home on exposed areas, stay well hydrated, and wear clothing that adequately covers the skin,” he explained.
Eye care is also key
Arosemena emphasized that not only the skin is affected by the sun, but also the eyes, which can suffer significant damage during the dry season.
“People must take care of their eyes just as they do their skin, as they are also damaged by sun exposure, especially in summer,” he noted.
Safe sun exposure times according to MINSA
Meanwhile, Ricardo Dávila, a resident physician in the Dermatology Department at Santo Tomás Hospital, explained that sun exposure can be beneficial if done at appropriate times, as it helps with vitamin D production.
He indicated that the recommended times are before 8:00 a.m. and after 4:00 p.m.
“If these time limits are exceeded and prolonged sun exposure occurs throughout life, it can lead to sunburn, premature aging, wrinkles, spots, and, in the worst cases, skin cancer,” he warned.
Skin cancer cases in Panama
According to statistics from the Records Department of the National Oncology Institute (ION), 252 cases of skin cancer were recorded in 2024, representing 4.8% of the total cases treated.
The distribution by province was as follows:
- Panama: 88 cases
- Panama Oeste: 44
- Chiriquí: 27
- Los Santos: 23
- Herrera: 18
- Veraguas: 18
- Coclé: 14
- Colón: 13
- Bocas del Toro: 3
- Darién: 2
- Indigenous regions: 2
According to the ION, skin cancer ranks sixth among the most treated types of cancer in the country, below breast, prostate, colon, cervical, and stomach cancers.
MINSA recommendations
- The Ministry of Health reiterated the following recommendations to the public:
- Limit the amount of time spent in the sun
- Wear clothing that covers exposed skin
- Apply broad-spectrum sunscreen with SPF 50
- Stay well hydrated
