The members of the Panamanian Chamber of Construction (CAPAC) continue to be concerned about the lack of payments for works carried out for the State in 2021. In a meeting held with authorities from the Ministry of Public Works, they said that the commitments amount to about 140 million of dollars for its members.
The Minister of Public Works, Rafael Sabonge, said that the amounts owed by the State to contractors are variable. He added that the issue has been addressed with the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) where a structure is being made to start paying and settling the commitments this year. The official hopes that this will be achieved before next June.
The head of the Ministry of Public Works said that there are companies that, despite the stoppage generated in the midst of the pandemic in 2020, resumed their projects and finished them, but acknowledged that there were others that suffered a little more from the point of From a financial point of view, however, they managed to reactivate the works.
In their recent rendering of accounts before the National Assembly, the authorities of the Ministry of Public Works detailed that various works are underway, such as the reactivation of the Pedregal-Gonzalillo project in North Panama, the La Cabima interchange and the widening of the the transisthmian road between Villa Grecia and Chilibre, including “La Y” of Chilibre, in the direction of the Forestal road. In the case of the transisthmian highway, along Line 1 of the Metro, Minister Rafael Sabonge said that some aesthetic details are missing, but vehicular fluidity can already be perceived in the area.
The MOP contemplates the development of the road rehabilitation project in the district of Panama at a cost of 80 million dollars, including the Vía España, the José Agustín Arango avenue, the Israel road, Balboa avenue, the widening of the main road of Condado del Rey, rehabilitation of avenues in Don Bosco, among other streets.
With information from Sergio Rivera.
