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    Panama

    Extended
    Americas · #66 of 117 markets · IEPA 2024 (final) · 2026 current estimate available
    50.8▼ -4.6 YoY
    ●●○0.80IEPA COMPOSITE

    Panama scores 50.8 out of 100 on the IEPA (2024 edition), ranking #66 of 117 economies. That is down 4.6 points on the year before. Its strongest zone is Entrepreneurship Capacity at 59.9. Its binding constraint, the lowest-scoring of its six zones, is Innovation Capacity at 30.3. How the IEPA works →

    SIX FACTORS · CLICK ANY SCORE FOR ITS EVIDENCE
    IEPA TRAJECTORY · 2010–2026
    2010201220142016201820202022202420264045505560
    CAPITAL FLOWS · FDI NET INFLOWS % OF GDP
    2010201120122013201420152016201720182019202120232025-5051015
    IE FDI intelligence · synced weekly
    PRODUCTIVE CAPABILITY
    IE COMPLEXITY LAYER · VINTAGE 2024
    #57of 145 ranked economies▼ 14 places since 2010
    How much productive know-how this market has demonstrated, read from the range and rarity of what it makes competitively.
    20102011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023202436455470
    CAPABILITY RANK · HIGHER IS BETTER
    2.51% / yr
    Implied growth
    Annual growth the current capability base points to.
    153
    Diversity
    Distinct products made at competitive scale.
    +0.36
    Capability score
    Standardized: 0 is the world average.
    +0.40
    Outlook
    Value of the new products within reach of what it already does.
    INDUSTRY STRENGTHS · REVEALED FROM TRADE EVIDENCE
    VINTAGE 2022-2024
    POSITION IN THE PRODUCT SPACE
    IE COMPLEXITY LAYER · VINTAGE 2024
    Textile Apparel and Accessories10 of 50 made · 63% of the rest within reach
    Minerals8 of 48 made · 45% of the rest within reach
    Construction, Building, and Home Supplies16 of 104 made · 44% of the rest within reach
    Agriculture26 of 200 made · 49% of the rest within reach
    Industrial Chemicals and Metals15 of 157 made · 26% of the rest within reach
    Textile and Home Goods7 of 78 made · 31% of the rest within reach
    Metalworking and Electrical Machinery and Parts11 of 155 made · 24% of the rest within reach
    Electronic and Electrical Goods3 of 73 made · 29% of the rest within reach
    MADE COMPETITIVELYONE STEP AWAY
    Widest opening is Textile Apparel and Accessories. This market makes 20% of that cluster today, and 63% of what it does not make sits one step from something it already does.
    Metalworking and Electrical Machinery and Parts is the furthest: 7% made, and only 24% of the rest is within one step. A move there means building capability rather than extending it.
    READ ON THE 96 OF 153 COMPETITIVE PRODUCTS THAT CARRY A POSITION IN THE CAPABILITY MAP
    POSITIONED TO BUILD NEXT
    IE COMPLEXITY LAYER · VINTAGE 2024
    Packing lids$64B world market
    Chemicals & PlasticsOPENS 1.52 · COMPLEXITY -0.43
    Plastic tubes and fittings$32B world market
    Chemicals & PlasticsOPENS 1.49 · COMPLEXITY -0.16
    Cereal foods$8B world market
    Agrifood & FisheriesOPENS 1.48 · COMPLEXITY -0.43
    Milk$11B world market
    Agrifood & FisheriesOPENS 1.45 · COMPLEXITY -0.28
    Malt extract$24B world market
    Agrifood & FisheriesOPENS 1.44 · COMPLEXITY -0.34
    Fermented milk products$5B world market
    Agrifood & FisheriesOPENS 1.41 · COMPLEXITY -0.33
    THE NEAREST OPTIONS AMONG 408 PRODUCTS ASSESSED · RANKED BY HOW MUCH EACH OPENS UP NEXT
    LIVE SIGNALS
    No recent scored signals for this market.
    PEERS · EXTENDED
    🇧🇷Brazil48.5→🇳🇦Namibia49.0→🇰🇬Kyrgyzstan47.3→🇩🇴Dominican Republic47.2→
    ECOSYSTEM DENSITY
    IE Ecosystem Registry · 2026-07-17
    91organizations indexed across 10 types · 83 mapped
    Universities & research bodies
    50
    Research organizations
    9
    Fab labs & makerspaces
    9
    Government bodies
    7
    Health research
    6
    Corporate R&D
    4
    Accelerators
    2
    Innovation hubs
    2
    Incubators
    1
    Science & tech parks
    1
    Universities, corporate R&D, government bodies, incubators, accelerators, science parks, and special economic zones, indexed today.Explore the directory →
    ORGANIZATIONS
    a sample of 91 indexed
    Acelerap
    Accelerators · Ciudad de Panamá
    Acelerador de Empresas de Panamá (AEP)
    Accelerators · Ciudad de Panamá
    Latin American University of Science and Technology
    Universities & research bodies · Panama City · 1991
    Universidad de Panamá
    Universities & research bodies · Panama City · 1935
    eScire
    Corporate R&D · Panama City · 2012
    Medistem (Panama)
    Corporate R&D · Panama City · 2008
    Belmont Forum
    Research organizations · Panama City · 2009
    Plan International Regional Office of the Americas
    Research organizations · Panama City · 1937
    National Oncologic Institute
    Health research · Panama City · 1940
    Hospital del Niño
    Health research · Panama City · 1965
    Startup Panamá
    Innovation hubs · Ciudad de Panamá
    Members get the full directory, filters, and exports.See all 91 organizations →

    Panama: common questions

    What is Panama's IEPA score?
    Panama scores 50.8 out of 100 on the IEPA, 2024 edition, which ranks it #66 of 117 economies.
    What is Panama's strongest zone?
    Entrepreneurship Capacity, at 59.9. The six zones are scored separately, so a market's strengths stay visible instead of being averaged away.
    What is holding Panama back?
    Its binding constraint is Innovation Capacity, at 30.3, the lowest of its six zones. The IEPA reports every zone separately so the constraint stays visible instead of being averaged into the composite.
    How does Panama compare with its peers?
    The closest scored peers are Brazil (48.5), Namibia (49.0), Kyrgyzstan (47.3), Dominican Republic (47.2).
    What is the IEPA?
    The Innovation Ecosystem Prosperity Assessment (IEPA) scores economies across six zones: innovation capacity, entrepreneurship capacity, resilience, alignment, the FDI accelerator, and prosperity outcomes. Every score carries a confidence band and traces to the evidence behind it.
    Run the full diagnostic →Talk to IE about Panama →