Figures from the state run website "Panama Emprende", revealed that during the first quarter of 2012 the site recorded 7396 notices of start of operations, 404 less than the same period in 2011.

"Last year the Panama Emprende platform was modernized with an investment of over $500,000 and it allows employers, in a time estimated by officials of the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) , to obtain in 45 minutes, a notice of operation a business just by having an email address and entering their personal identification number, not needing any other prerequisite for the activity," noted an article in Capital.com.pa.

The statistics from Panama Emprenden also reveal that in 2011, 26,505 notices were generated while in 2012 the figure increased to 28,406. In addition the capital invested, according to information provided by employers was $1.0248 billion in 2011 which then dropped to $889.1 million in 2012.

Source: Capital.com.pa

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