After eight working tables, the municipal unions have completed the process of updating and modernizing Law 37 of 2009. Nadine González, mayor of Pinogana and president of the Association of Municipalities of Panama (Amupa), announced that they are preparing to present the agreements reached to their members throughout the country and regions.
During the discussions, consensus was reached on several crucial topics, such as the collection and distribution of property tax funds among municipalities by the Ministry of Economy and Finance, as well as the evaluation of the public works program and municipal services. González emphasized the importance of the efficient and transparent use of allocated resources, as well as the relevance of citizen participation in this process.
On the other hand, the president of the Association of Municipalities of Panama, Miguel Batista, explained that the goal of these contributions is to provide local governments with greater capacities, resources, and strengths to serve the communities that the central government has difficulties reaching. In this sense, he highlighted the need for transparency, accountability, and citizen participation to be fundamental elements in the new reform of the decentralization law.
During the working tables, officials from the Office of the Comptroller General of the Nation, the National Decentralization Authority (AND), the Association of Municipalities of Panama (AMUPA), the Association of Mayors of Panama (ADALPA), the National Coordinator of Corregimiento Representatives (CONARE), the Association of Indigenous Municipalities of Panama (AMPI), and the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) also participated.
