Panama Hopes To Become Home Of FTAA Secretariat

by Mike Godfrey, Tax-News.com, Washington

25 May 2004

Panama is putting up a strong fight in its campaign to become the home of the permanent secretariat of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), it has emerged.

Running against Atlanta, Chicago, Colorado Springs, Galveston, Houston, and Miami in the United States, and Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago, Cancun and Puebla, both in Mexico, and San Juan in Puerto Rico, Panama has argued that a variety of factors, including infrastructure, location, and widespread acceptance of US dollars, fall in its favor.

In an effort to garner support for the jurisdiction's cause, Panamanian vice-chancellor, Nivia Rossana Castrellon has recently toured countries such as Guatemala, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Paraguay, and Bolivia.

However, Trinidad & Tobago's Prime Minister, Patrick Manning has expressed confidence that Port of Spain will be chosen as the location for the FTAA secretariat, as have the authorities in Miami, which has dubbed itself the "Gateway of the Americas".

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