The Konrad Adenauer Foundation was very pleased to be able to celebrate, on Saturday April 23, the first meeting of fellows in Panama at the headquarters of the country project office and the regional program ADELA.

The morning event was framed by the master class of the Spanish political scientist Mr. Manuel Alcántara Sáez, an expert in parliamentary politics throughout Latin America, who spoke on Parliamentary Legitimacy and Governance and the challenges for strengthening democracy.
In attendance were 30 of the fellows selected to the program in September 2021, from various areas of the country, accompanied also by a smaller group of fellows from the Diploma on Socio-Ecological and Energy Transitions in Latin America and the Caribbean, conducted by the EAN University of Bogota, Colombia.

It was also an opportune moment for those present to learn in depth about the work of the country office of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, as well as the Regional Program Partnerships for Democracy and Development with Latin America (ADELA), thanks to an extended presentation made by our representative and director, Winfried Weck.

After the master class, a space was opened for a substantial open discussion between the fellows and Dr. Alcántara Sáez, where they exchanged views and appreciations about the role of political parties, independent candidates for public office, and the analysis of the credibility of parliamentary institutions, among many others.