Interview: China could support Panama's development as scientific "hub" for Latin America

PANAMA CITY -- Cooperation with China could be a key factor to help make Panama a scientific "hub" for Latin America, said Jagannatha Rao, director of the Institute for Scientific Research and High Technology Services of Panama (INDICASAT-AIP).

Panama's position as a "hub" in the region could create connections with China, and that would turn the Central American country into an incubator for scientific training and knowledge transfer in Latin America, the specialist told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Thanks to joint work in the fields of technology and innovation, Rao said, INDICASAT-AIP and Chinese research institutions have forged an important relationship.

There is also a two-way channel for information sharing on scientific researches between Panama and China, according to Rao, who gave the visit of Bai Chunli, president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, to Panama in 2018 as an example.

In October 2018, Bai attended the National Congress of Science and Technology in the capital of Panama City, an event sponsored by the Panamanian Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Secretariat of Science, Technology, and Innovation.

Rao said he values China's knowledge of and experience in the fight of COVID-19, adding that as the Asian country was the first to keep the pandemic under control, it has a better understanding of the disease, something that could help Latin America.

In addition to human capital training, the specialist sees many possibilities for cooperation with China through the establishment of a high-tech institution, such as the Panama Genomic Center, as well as the development of joint master's and doctoral programs.

The development of bilingual science and technology communication, in both English and Spanish, was important, the director said, noting that language would not be an obstacle for the cooperation between China and Latin America.