Lula goes to Panama to participate in the LA and Caribbean Economic Forum

This Tuesday and Wednesday, the president will be at an event that seeks to promote broad debate about the region’s challenges with political and economic leaders. This is the president’s first visit to Panama this term

President Lula visits Panama this Tuesday (27/1) and Wednesday. He will participate in the International Economic Forum of Latin America, organized by the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF) and the government of Panama, which seeks to promote a broad debate on the region’s challenges with political and economic leaders. This is the president’s first visit to the country in the current term, although he has already been to Panama in 2007.

Lula is expected to participate in the inaugural session of the Forum, on Wednesday (28), according to the event’s schedule. In this edition, Brazil is the guest of honor. Therefore, Lula will be the second to speak, right after the president of Panama, José Raúl Mulino. Afterwards, the Brazilian president must meet with the Panamanian leader, ending the agenda with a visit to the Panama Canal.

At the Economic Forum, the participation of Rodrigo Paz, president of Bolivia; Daniel Noboa, president of Ecuador; and José Antonio Kast, president-elect of Chile, as well as the Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley, and the Prime Minister of Jamaica, Andrew Holness.

During a presentation to the press, on Friday (23), ambassador Gisela Padovan, secretary of Latin America and the Caribbean at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE), highlighted the dynamic moment in bilateral relations.

“It is an unprecedented moment, I would say, not only in relation to Panama. I think that few heads of state will have met as many times as President Lula and President Mulino, who, since 2024, have met five times in bilateral meetings, on the sidelines of Mercosur summits and in specific meetings. In addition to President Mulino’s visit, in August 2025, which is now reciprocated by President Lula”, stated the ambassador.

Commercial expansion

The economic relationship between Brazil and Panama registered a historic expansion last year, with commercial exchange jumping 78% and reaching the US$ 1.6 billion mark. The performance was driven mainly by Brazilian exports of oil and oil products, which soared from US$300 million to US$1.6 billion.

The sharp growth generated a Brazilian surplus that diplomacy is now seeking to equalize: ambassador Gisela Padovan signaled that balancing the trade balance, through encouraging imports of Panamanian products, is a priority for Itamaraty and the Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services.

In the defense sector, the recent sale of four Super Tucano aircraft, from Embraer, to the Panamanian government is seen as a milestone in South-South Cooperation. The deal reinforces the reliability of Brazilian supply chains in Latin America and consolidates the country’s technological presence in the region.

In addition to commercial exchanges, the partnership goes deeper into the field of investments. Currently, Panama has a stock of US$9.5 billion in Brazilian capital, ranking as the seventh largest foreign investment destination in Brazil.

Agreement

During the Forum, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mauro Vieira, must also sign the Investment Cooperation and Facilitation Agreement, which will establish the rules for protecting Panamanian investments in Brazil, and Brazilian ones in Panama. According to Ambassador Alexandre Ghisleni, director of the MRE’s Department of Economic, Financial and Services Policy, the agreement can facilitate the circulation of capital for productive investments between the two countries.

“It’s a way for you to encourage regional integration in a deeper and more concrete way, aiming for the long term. It’s part of a Brazilian initiative to create a network of agreements, especially with developing countries, in order to provide new avenues, new paths for economic development, to be a kind of economic version of South-South cooperation”, said the ambassador during the briefing.

Logistics

Ambassador Padovan also highlighted that Panama is an important logistics hub. Brazil is the 15th largest user of the Panama Canal, through which almost seven million tons of Brazilian exports pass per year.

Tocumen Airport also represents an important logistics center in the Central American country, with 20 million passengers per year. “It’s a central hub for us, for connections to Central America, the Caribbean, sometimes even South American countries like Guyana and Suriname,” Padovan said.

Mercosur

Another important element for the relationship between Brazil and the Panamanian country is the fact that Panama is the first Central American country to join Mercosur. According to the ambassador, this issue is important to strengthen the South American economic bloc. “We saw with great joy the interest of President Mulino, who quickly signed an association agreement. And now we are about to start trade negotiations with Brazil and the countries in the region”, he stated.

Agenda

During the visit to Panama, other topics should be addressed by the president, such as: economic prospects for the region; the role of the region in the global context in the face of current challenges; the role of the private sector in the region’s development; infrastructure for the development of the region; artificial intelligence; business; trade rules; energy; mining; tourism and food security. “It is a broad agenda for discussing the region’s main challenges in the economic area,” said ambassador Alexandre Ghisleni.

Originally published by Agência Gov on 01/27/2026

By Itamaraty