Panamanian companies receive award for their commitment to sustainable mobility

Article originally published on CABEI's website on 30/07/2024. LACIF contributes to the Mipymes Verdes Initiative through an investment grant and technical assistance.

Today, the innovation and commitment of three Panamanian companies were recognized as winners of the Regional Sustainable Mobility Contest promoted by the Green MSMEs II Initiative of the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), the German Government, through the KfW, and the European Union.

This contest seeks to encourage micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to invest in projects aimed at reducing CO2 emissions, thus promoting environmentally friendly business models, especially those committed to sustainable mobility.

MCE ENERGIA INC is the first place winner with its Mobility Smart Kids project, which seeks to promote sustainable mobility among children and young people from 8 to 15 years of age. This project combines learning generation, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education, the incorporation of low-emission technology and the participation of the educational community to promote behavioral change with regard to transportation solutions. The prize, which amounts to US$7,000, will be invested not only in the education of children and adolescents, but also in the development of vehicle fleet replacement plans for schools, according to the company's business development manager, Jesús González.

The installation of parking lots equipped with solar panels, energy storage batteries and chargers for electric vehicles is the second-place winning project belonging to the company Greenspace E-Mobility. The US$5,000 prize will allow the company to boost environmental sustainability, promote electric mobility and build a profitable and eco-friendly business plan, according to Roberpierre Villar, a partner of the company.

Melibeth Ambulo, owner of SmileWay, who won third place for an amount of US$3,000, presented a project to streamline parking management in a more economical and secure way through an online application, which will reduce CO2 emissions. The funds received will be used to strengthen the processing and optimization of the application, with the objective of providing a beneficial and attractive product for the parking sector nationwide.

This is the first edition of the contest, which was launched on March 19 and closed on June 9, with the participation of more than 40 MSMEs at the regional level, thus encouraging sustainable mobility in the region. The award ceremonies have already been held in Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Costa Rica, countries in which innovative projects that present solutions to alleviate vehicle pollution, facilitate access to charging stations for electric vehicles, and offer sustainable transportation options for both companies as well as individuals, among others, have stood out.