Panama
The Constitution of the Republic of Panama explicitly guarantees the right to adequate food.
The Republic of Panama has become a State party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) in 1977 by way of ratification.
CONSTITUTIONAL RECOGNITIONS OF THE RIGHT TO ADEQUATE FOOD
Explicit protection of the right to adequate food
Article 56: "The State protects marriage, motherhood and the family. What is relative to civil status shall be determined by law. The State shall protect the physical, mental and moral health of minors and shall guarantee their rights to support, health, education and social security. In an equal manner, the elderly and the sick who are destitute shall have the right to this protection."
Implicit protection of the right to adequate food
Article 64: "Work is a right and duty of the individual and accordingly the State is obliged to devise economic policies to promote full employment, and to ensure to every workman the necessary conditions for a decent existence."
Article 66: "Rules of periodic adjustment of the minimum salary or wage of the worker shall be set by law, to cover the normal requirements of his/her family, to improve worker's standard of living according to specific conditions of each economic region and activity. The law may also determine the method of fixing minimum salaries or wages for professions or trades [...]"
Article 110: "In matters of health, the State is primarily obliged to develop the following activities, integrating the functions of prevention, cure and rehabilitation in the: 1. Establishment of a national policy of food and nutrition, ensuring optimum nutritional conditions for the entire population, by promoting the availability, consumption, and biological benefit of suitable food;[...]"
Article 113: "All individuals are entitled to the security of their economic means for subsistence in case of disability or impossibility of obtaining remunerated work.[...]"
Article 118: "The State has the fundamental obligation to guarantee that its population lives in a healthy environment, free of contamination (pollution), and where air, water, and foodstuffs satisfy the requirements for proper development of human life."
Article 122: "The State shall pay special attention to all aspects of Cattle and Agricultural development, promoting optimum use of the land, seeing to its reasonable distribution, and its proper use and conservation, so that it may be maintained in productive conditions. The State shall guarantee each farmer the right to live with dignity."
Directive principles of state policy
Article 4: "The Republic of panama abides by the rules of International Law."
INTERNATIONAL INSTRUMENTS
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) – 1966
Status: Ratification (1977)
Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) – 1979
Status: Ratification (1981)
Legislation and policies recognizing the right to adequate food
Considering that the human right to adequate food can be implemented through a variety of legal and policy actions, we invite you to visit the FAOLEX Country Profile database for a wide-ranging collection of measures that have been taken at national level. Some of the documents you may find are legislation and policies that touch on a number of relevant Guidelines, such as those on Access to resources and assets (Guideline 8), Food safety and consumer protection (Guideline 9), Support for vulnerable groups (Guideline 13) and Natural and human-made disasters (Guideline 16).
