If you lived in Panama instead of Cayman Islands, you would:

Economy

make 81.0% less money

Cayman Islands has a GDP per capita of $104,293 as of 2024, while in Panama, the GDP per capita is $19,790 as of 2025.

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Life

have 37.3% more children

In Cayman Islands, there are approximately 11.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Panama, there are 15.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 56.9% more likely to die during infancy

In Cayman Islands, approximately 7.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Panama, on the other hand, 12.0 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 10.3% less likely to have internet access

In Cayman Islands, approximately 81.1% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Panama, about 72.8% do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 57.3% more on education

Cayman Islands spends 1.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Panama spends 2.5% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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Geography

see 15.6 times more coastline

Cayman Islands has a total of 160 km of coastline. In Panama, that number is 2,490 km.

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Safety

be 2.7 times more likely to be murdered

Cayman Islands has a homicide rate of 4.4 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Panama, that number is 11.7 per 100,000 as of 2023.

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Infrastructure

find 67.8% less home broadband

Cayman Islands has 56.4 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Panama has 18.1 as of 2023.

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Environment

emit 45.2% less CO2

Cayman Islands emits 5.0 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Panama emits 2.7 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), The World Factbook (2021–2022). How we calculate this

Panama: At a glance

Panama is a sovereign country in Central America/Caribbean, with a total land area of approximately 74,340 sq km. Explored and settled by the Spanish in the 16th century, Panama broke with Spain in 1821 and joined a union of Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela - named the Republic of Gran Colombia. When the latter dissolved in 1830, Panama remained part of Colombia. With US backing, Panama seceded from Colombia in 1903 and promptly signed a treaty with the US allowing for the construction of a canal and US sovereignty over a strip of land on either side of the structure (the Panama Canal Zone). The Panama Canal was built by the US Army Corps of Engineers between 1904 and 1914. In 1977, an agreement was signed for the complete transfer of the Canal from the US to Panama by the end of the century. Certain portions of the Zone and increasing responsibility over the Canal were turned over in the subsequent decades. With US help, dictator Manuel NORIEGA was deposed in 1989. The entire Panama Canal, the area supporting the Canal, and remaining US military bases were transferred to Panama by the end of 1999. In October 2006, Panamanians approved an ambitious plan (estimated to cost $5.3 billion) to expand the Canal. The project, which began in 2007 and could double the Canal's capacity, is expected to be completed in 2015.
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