[Country Profile]

Panama, the full name of the Republic of Panama, has an area of ​​75,517 square kilometers. Located in the Isthmus of Central America. It borders Colombia on the east, the Pacific Ocean on the south, Costa Rica on the west, and the Caribbean Sea on the north. Connecting the continents of Central and South America, the Panama Canal connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans from south to north, and is known as the "Bridge of the World". The coastline is about 2988 kilometers long. The terrain is undulating, with ravines and valleys crisscrossing. Except for the north and south coastal plains, it is mostly mountainous. There are more than 400 rivers, the larger ones are Tuila River, Chepo River and Chagres River. The earth is close to the equator and has a tropical oceanic climate.

In 1501, it became a Spanish colony and belonged to the Governorate of New Granada. Independence in 1821 and became part of the Greater Colombia Republic. After the disintegration of the Greater Colombia Republic in 1830, it became a province of the Republic of New Grenada (later called Colombia). After defeating Britain and France in 1903, the United States signed a treaty with the Colombian government to build and lease the canal by the United States, but the Colombian Parliament refused to approve it. On November 3, 1903, the US army landed in Panama, instigating Pakistan to separate from Colombia and establish the Republic of Panama. On November 18 of the same year, the United States obtained the permanent monopoly right to construct and operate the canal and the permanent right to use, occupy and control the canal area. During World War II, the United States rented 134 military bases in Bachchan, and some of them were returned after 1947. In September 1977, Pakistan and the United States signed the "New Canal Treaty" (also known as the Torrijos-Carter Treaty). On December 31, 1999, Panama regained its sovereignty over the canal.

National flag: A horizontal rectangle with a ratio of length to width of 3:2. The flag surface is composed of four equal horizontal rectangles: the upper left and lower right are white rectangles with blue and red five-pointed stars respectively; the lower left is a blue rectangle, and the upper right is a red rectangle. White symbolizes peace; red and blue respectively represent the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party of the former Panama. The position of these two colors on the national flag indicates that the two parties are united to fight for the interests of the nation. Two five-pointed stars symbolize loyalty and strength respectively. This flag was designed by Manuel Amador Guerrero, the first president of Panama.

Panama has a population of 2.72 million (estimated in 1997); among them, Indo-European mixed races accounted for 70%, blacks accounted for 14%, whites accounted for 10%, and Indians accounted for 6%. Spanish is the official language. 85% of residents believe in Catholicism, 4.7% believe in Protestant Christianity, and 4.5% believe in Islam.

The Panama Canal area, the regional financial center, the Colon Free Trade Zone and the merchant fleet are the four pillars of the Pakistani economy. Service industry income occupies an important position in the national economy. Panama is an agricultural country. The cultivated land area is 2.3 million hectares, accounting for 1/3 of the country's land area. One third of the labor force in the country is engaged in agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery. In the planting industry, rice and corn are mainly produced, and the cash crops are bananas, coffee, cocoa, etc. Bananas and cocoa are the main export products. Panama’s industrial base is quite weak and there is no heavy industry. 14.1% of the labor force in the country is engaged in industrial production. In order to reduce imports, the Pakistani government attaches great importance to the development of consumer goods industry, food processing, textile and other light industry sectors that replace imports. In addition, the country's cement and copper mining have also developed rapidly. Panama’s well-developed service industry is the backbone of the national economy, and its output value accounts for 70% of its GDP. The service industry includes canal shipping, banking, insurance, etc. Tourism is the third largest source of income in Pakistan, accounting for 10% of GDP.

[Main Cities]

Panama City: Panama City (Panama City) is located on a peninsula near the mouth of the Pacific coast of the Panama Canal. The city faces Panama Bay, backed by the Ankang Valley, and is picturesque. Originally an Indian fishing village, the old city was built in 1519. The gold and silver produced in the Andean countries are transported to this point by sea, and then transported by livestock to the Caribbean coast and transferred to Spain. It was very prosperous. Later, piracy became rampant and trade was blocked. In 1671, the pirate Sir Morgan burned down the old city. In 1674, the current Panama City was built 6.5 kilometers west of the old city. It became part of New Granada (Colombia) in 1751. After Panama declared independence from Colombia in 1903, the city became the capital. After the completion of the Panama Canal (1914), the city developed rapidly.

The city is divided into old districts and new districts. The old district is the main commercial area, the streets are narrow, there are still some Spanish castles and houses with terraces. The city center is Independence Square, also known as the Cathedral Square. The headquarters of the French command when the French built the canal has now been changed to the Central Post and Telecommunications Bureau. There are also a central hotel and bishop's palace in the area. In the south of the old district, the Plaza de Francia is surrounded by red yellow butterfly trees. There is an obelisk to commemorate the French workers who built the canal on the square, and there is a colonial-era judicial building on one side. On the coastal avenue behind the building, you can see the scenery of Panama Bay and the Flamenly Islands shrouded in a purple haze.

The terrain of the new district is long and narrow, connecting the old district and the ancient city. There is a tomb of martyrs in the Peace Park in the southeast of the city. In the corner of the square is the Panama Legislative Building. There are still bullet marks on the wall of the building. This is also the site of the UN Security Council meeting on Panama in March 1973. Central Avenue in the new district, parallel to the coastline, is the widest and most prosperous road in the city. The streets of the new district are neat, with many modern high-rise buildings and new garden houses. The more famous ones include the National Theater, San Francisco Church, Bolivar Institute, Anthropology Museum, Ethnographic Museum and Canal Museum.