NSU Horizons Spring 2016

29 NSU HORIZONS Q Vice President Saint Malo de Alvarado, you’ve now been in office as vice presi- dent nearly two years. Can you talk about the impact the job has had on your life as a leader? A This has been a tremendous and very challenging experience. After a year and a half, we have undertaken important efforts to reduce the social gap. Our government has invested more than $4 billion U.S. dollars in housing, water, security, education, and infrastructure projects, which represent 40 percent of the national budget. Since it was my primary vision, I am especially proud to say that this govern- ment has come a long way in strengthen- ing transparency and democracy, and our efforts were recognized at the national and international levels. In gender equality, another relevant topic for me, we have a long way to go, but we are making great progress. Regarding our foreign policy, Panama is having a more active role in the interna- tional arena, especially regarding topics in the social development agenda. We have consolidated our historic role as a country of dialogue, as well as our position as the “Capital of the Americas.” The seventh Summit of the Americas, the appointment of a Panamanian woman as commissioner for the Inter American Human Rights Commission of the Organ- ization of American States (OAS), our selection as a member of the Human Rights Council at theUnitedNations, and theHuman- itarian Hub that will be based in Panama, among others, are examples of the leader- ship role we are promoting for Panama. continued on next page