According to a recently study conducted by the (NEF) New Economics Foundation, Panama was ranked the 5th happiest of 178 countries. Interestingly enough, the United States came in 150th and Canada slightly better at 111th.

Central America is the region with the highest average score in the index. This is because the region combines relatively good life expectancy (a mean of 70 years) and a high life satisfaction with an ecological foot print below it globally equitable share. Central America has had a notorious history of conflict and political instability, but in the last 15 years have been relatively peaceful which perhaps together with traditionally high levels of community engagement, explain its success.

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Clayton is located in the old Canal Zone, on one of the former Military Bases of the United States. It is positioned at the opening of the Panama Canal directly in front of the Miraflores locks. It is in an area of high appreciation and convenience located only minutes away from the main access to the Corredor Norte Highway.

Clayton is close to important shopping centers such as: Albrook and El Dorado Malls, where you can find all kinds of shopping, movie theatres, and restaurants. Also within 5 minutes of Clayton one can find several schools, including English Speaking Schools, an international airport and several post offices.

Clayton is a privileged area of Panama bordered by a National Park with a peaceful setting of lush vegetation. It is also home to the new US Embassy headquarters, the City of Knowledge and many green park areas.

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The project to expand the Panama Canal, which will cost approximately US$5.2 billion, continues to stir up controversy. More than twenty organizations of a variety of types have registered at the Electoral Tribunal to promote the "Yes" and "No" options of the referendum ballots to be cast on October 22. Among those supporting the measure is the Workers' Federation of the Republic of Panama (CTRP), which requested its 40,000 members to vote for the "yes" option. Additionally, the Panama Canal Pilot's Guild (UPCP) states that the expansion of the waterway is "a necessity that cannot be postponed", but remained short of requesting its member to vote for or against the project, due to the personal nature of the decision. Other groups suppporting the project are the members of Fundación por Panamá, APEDE, the Panamanian Chamber of Tourism, the Panama Chamber of Commerce, "Mi Canal", Agrupación Así Sí (Alianza por un sí social e integral), Unión de Dirigentes Naturales, Cámara Panameña de la Construcción (CAPAC) and Sociedad Panameña de Ingenieros y Arquitectos (SPIA).

The expansion project has been a new element of dispute within Movimiento Liberal Republicano Nacionalista (MOLIRENA), one of the main opposition political parties in Panama. A number of members of the party recently registered a faction supporting the "yes" movement, thus disobeying the call made by the party’s president to promote the "no" vote for the referendum. SUNTRACS, a left-wing labor organization, the Panameñista Party and "Movimiento de Mujeres Panameñas por el No," a women’s organization, are among the promoters of the "no" vote.

In the meantime, political leaders from the government and the opposition continue to debate in the press on the possibility of delaying the referendum in order for the government to gain consensus about the project, although no particular sector has made such a proposal official. However, one thing remains constant. All political parties represented at the National Assembly have voted to support the project.

The latest poll revealed that 58% of Panamanians support the Canal’s expansion project, whereas 20% is against it, and an equal number remains undecided. Despite the favorable numbers supporting the expansion, the government is still not satisfied with the results, and the Chamber of Commerce has expressed concern about the growing number of undecided voters and the belligerent attitude of those supporting the "no" vote.