This is the first country in Latin America to offer 'vaccine tourism'

09/16/2021 15:03

• Clarín.com

• Travels

Updated 09/16/2021 15:03

In addition to its beaches, the famous interoceanic ridge and the lush jungle ideal for ecotourism,

Panama will

soon begin to tempt visitors from all over the continent with a new attraction:

anti-covi-19 vaccines for tourists

, according to the country's Presidency.

The Central American nation will thus become the first country in Latin America to offer "

vaccine tourism

", especially for thousands of Central Americans who, given the slow progress of vaccination in their countries, had to travel to the United States in order to be immunized.

It is that the Cabinet Council of the Central American country

approved a project to authorize the Ministry of Health to apply

AstraZeneca

vaccines to 

 people who arrive in the territory as

tourists

.

The small island of Taboga, in the Panamanian Pacific, was declared "free of covid-19".

Photo EFE / Welcome Velasco

The Panamanian Presidency explained in a statement that the purpose of the project, called

Vacutur Panama

, is to reactivate the economy with the accommodation of tourists, who must stay in the country for a

minimum of two nights, 

in hotels registered by the Tourism Authority. of Panama (ATP), which has registered more than 60 companies for the activity.

He pointed out that in the coming days, the health authorities and the ATP will expand details of the Vacutur Panama, such as the date of its initiation of the initiative, which has

not

yet been

released

.

In search of recovering a key sector

Since the beginning of the year, unions from the tourist sector of the Central American country had urged the Government of their country to a

controlled opening of the sector

, complying with strict biosafety measures, to

prevent the closure of thousands of companies

that depend on the activity and that were facing a crisis by the restrictions.

View from Panama City from the Coastal Beltway.

Photo STR / AFP

The president of the National Chamber of Tourism of Panama (Camtur), Ernesto Orillac, said then that the sector he represents already accumulated

debts with the banks

at this juncture

for about 800 million dollars.

It should be noted that the Panamanian economy collapsed by almost 18% in 2020 due to the effects of the pandemic, and that in that economy the tourism industry is very important, representing

11% of the country's GDP

.

According to the Presidency of Panama, the recently approved initiative that will contribute to the recovery of

more than 100,000 jobs

,

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