WHILE PANAMA continues to have the highest growth rate on the American continent and a GDP that has ensured a boom in luxury homes,  vehicles and foreign travel, the effect is still not reaching  a fifth of the country’s population who are listed "in poverty."

Over 10 percent of the population remains in "extreme poverty".

The figures come from a Thursday October 8 release from the Ministry y of Finance announcing a reduction in poverty rates over the past year.

"The conditional cash transfer programs promoted by the government of President Juan Carlos Varela (120 at 65, Universal Scholarship Opportunities Network) Have reduced poverty rates in Panama, from 25.6% in 2014 to 22.3% in 2015, while extreme poverty or indigence dropped from 10.8% in 2014 to 10.3% in 2015," said the statement.

"In March 2010, the proportion of people in poverty in overall stood at 29.8%, in 2011 it dropped to 27.6% in 2012 to  26.5% in 2013 to 25.8% in 2014 to25.6%. In March 2015 it was reduced to 22.3 %. From March 2014 to March 2015, 83,331 Panamanians came out of poverty, " the announcement  concluded.