Transportation and communication

Panama is a major center of international transportation by sea and air. About 13,000 ships pass through the Panama Canal yearly. Cristóbal, a suburb of Colón; and Balboa, a suburb of Panama City, are busy international ports. The main airport is at Tocumen, near Panama City.

Panama's merchant marine is the largest in the world. Shipping lines of other countries own most of the ships. These companies register the ships in Panama because Panama allows them to pay lower taxes and wages than do their own countries, and also in order to avoid some safety regulations.

Only about a third of Panama's road system is paved. Most rural roads in Panama have a dirt surface. The country's major road is the Panamanian section of the Pan American Highway. It runs from the Costa Rican border to the eastern part of the country. Another important road in Panama is Trans-Isthmian Highway between Colón and Panama City.

Panama has six daily newspapers. The country has an average of about 1 radio for every 5 people and about 1 television set for every 7 people.