Río Indio project and technical talent top challenges for Panama Canal's new administration

The future availability of water for Panama Canal communities and ship traffic hinges on the Río Indio project, according to interim deputy administrator Rubén Gustavo Pérez Pinzón. He identified the project as one of the main challenges facing the Canal's new administration.

Under the schedule he described, engineering work should begin in January 2028. Soil studies and other evaluations are already under way.

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The Río Indio project for the Panama Canal is of vital importance because the future of the water supply for the population of the canal area and for the transit of ships through the Panama Canal depends on it.

Pérez Pinzón also highlighted the difficulty of finding workers with the technical skills needed to maintain the Canal's operations and pass its expertise to younger generations. The Canal, he said, is a highly technical institution whose skills have sustained it for more than 100 years.

He warned that the education system leaves gaps in areas needed for jobs at the interoceanic waterway, particularly mathematics, English, mechanical comprehension and critical analysis. He said critical-analysis skills were deteriorating because of social media and artificial intelligence, although he acknowledged that both can be useful tools.

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One of the most important challenges we have is talent.