Experts fear that the coronavirus crisis will destroy advances of recent years in access to education in Latin America, forcing the poorest children to look for work.
The American continent has summed 19 million cases and more than 614,000 deaths related to the new coronavirus that appeared in China at the end of 2019. This represents almost half of the known infections and deaths worldwide.
The project, located on the outskirts of Panama City, planned for 17 buildings, more than 1,700 beds, 50 operating rooms and 300 doctor's offices across some 220,000 square meters.
Spending on education in Latin America and the Caribbean will fall by 9% during 2020, due to the sharp contraction of GDP in the region due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a joint study by UNESCO and ECLAC.
The Panamanian government has for now ruled out the hiring of Cuban doctors to combat COVID-19, amid protests from the health union and warnings from the United States.
