This report summarizes the findings of the Transition Readiness Assessment for Panama carried out by Aceso Global and APMG Health, with financial and technical support from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. It aims to support Panama’s transition planning as the Global Fund scales down its financial support for the national tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS responses. To produce a complete report, the Aceso Global team used the Guidance for Global Fund Transition to inform the analysis and consulted with numerous local stakeholders, including government officials at the Ministries of Health and Finance, Global Fund staff members and local civil society organizations.

The report summarizes the Global Fund’s financial and non-financial support to the country, analyzes the epidemiological situation as well as the national response in Panama and provides a background on the institutional and enabling environments, human rights and gender situation.

Based on a thorough analysis of the Panamanian health system, the Aceso Global team identified the most pressing opportunities and threats to be considered during the transition process. Recommendations included the following: increasing the outreach to high risk communities to improve the identification of TB patients, particularly among indigenous groups and communities with weak links to primary care clinics; merging the HIV and TB programs of the Ministry of Health and the Social Security Fund to avoid duplication of effort and reduce inefficiencies; and committing to anti-discriminations actions. In addition, the report underlined civil society organizations’ urgent need for assistance in sustainability planning.