Opening Our Doors to the Next Generation of Maritime and Port Professionals 

Students pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Maritime Business Administration with a specialization in Ports and Multimodal Transportation at the Faculty of Administrative and Financial Sciences of Universidad del Istmo in Chiriquí toured the site where Puerto Barú in David will be built.

The students toured the port project and learned firsthand how a development of this scale is being prepared, from planning to environmental management.

For these students, who are training in port management and multimodal logistics, the visit provided a direct look at the realities of a project that aims to become a key trade hub in western Panama.  

“As students pursuing a degree in Maritime and Port Business Administration, we visited Puerto Barú, where we had the opportunity to learn in depth about the strategies being implemented to conserve and protect mangroves. We were also given explanations and shown concrete evidence of the measures being taken to prevent waste, debris, and project-related activities from affecting this important ecosystem,” said Elmis Cedeño, a student at Universidad del Istmo.

The students added that the visit helped them understand “how port development can go hand in hand with sustainability, driving growth in the agricultural, tourism, and logistics sectors of our region.”

They also learned about the technical aspects of the navigation channel. The channel will be 31 kilometers long and 500 meters wide, of which only 100 meters will be used for vessel navigation. Ships will travel at a speed of 6 knots, accompanied by a tugboat.

The students concluded that the visit was an opportunity to learn, explore, and understand that development and environmental conservation must go hand in hand.