A plan, a canal

last updated 8 January 2015

Panama City, Panama

Panamanian voters last week approved a $5.25 billion government plan to upgrade the Panama Canal. The project, which won almost 80 percent of the vote in a nationwide referendum, will double the 50-mile canal’s capacity, by adding a third channel big enough to handle today’s giant container ships. Opponents objected to the project’s cost and potential for spawning corruption, but voters accepted President Martín Torrijos’ argument that the renovation would ensure Panama’s prosperity. “This country needs this project to join the First World,” said businessman Joaquín Rodríguez.