According to the official statistics, during the first ten months of 2012 the turnover in casino business in Panama exceeded $ 2.157 billion which is higher than the budget of most of ministries in the Republic. For example, Panama spends $1.470 billion on education each year, $210 million on social development, $88 million on trade and industry administration and $146 million on agricultural development.
Each minute there is $4,993 being gambled in Panama, which is a 26% increase comparing to the same period in 2011. This number includes, lottery, bingo, betting, race track and slot machines. Taking into an account that on average there are 3,84 member of a single household, then the amount gambled in the first 10 month of 2012 is enough to feed the whole nation during 7 months.
Only lottery sales have reached $458 million nationwide, which is equivalent to 1,5 million per day. However, the biggest growth are counting casinos, their business has grown by 42% comparing to last year results.
Unfortunately, despite of the general stereotype that most of money into the gambling business is brought by tourists isn’t true. Simple research shows that 65% of those who visit casinos are Panamanian residents. At the same time, among the visitors of smaller centers the Panamanians are responsible for almost 100% of the income.
There are some initiatives to reduce the gambling addiction among locals.
