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First death from coronavirus in Panama 2:42
(CNN Spanish) - The president of Panama, Laurentino Cortizo, declared this Friday the state of national emergency to face the coronavirus.
The state of emergency will facilitate state entities to acquire goods, services or works through a special procedure, in accordance with the decree published in the official gazette.
The decree authorizes US $ 50 million to be allocated to these special hires for 180 days.
While the state of emergency lasts, the administration and authorization of these funds will be the responsibility of the Ministry of the Presidency.
Among the measures that the government decreed to face the coronavirus are the elimination of tariffs for the importation of medical supplies, raw materials, personal hygiene products and cleaning of facilities, while guaranteeing purchases of the equivalent of US $ 20 million. in meats and grains of national production.
As part of the measures, the Cortizo government announced the creation of four teams, one of which will follow up on international collaborative measures to deal with the coronavirus, a second will deal with maintaining social order, the third with maintaining contact with private unions and workers, and the room that will be dedicated to mitigating the economic impact of the pandemic.
Laurentino Cortizo