Naval engineer Ilya Espino de Marotta took charge of the Panama Canal administration on Monday, becoming the first woman to lead the waterway at a difficult moment for one of the world's most important shipping routes, according to a report by the Associated Press.
Espino moves up from deputy administrator to the top post, having led the canal's multi-billion-dollar expansion project the previous decade. She is only the fourth Panamanian to hold the position since the United States handed over the interoceanic waterway in late 1999.
Also read: How El Nino is choking the Panama Canal
Her appointment is being seen as a marker of women's capability in executive leadership roles within the shipping industry, AP reported. The canal drives the Panamanian economy and handles close to 3% of global maritime trade.
Water project is the immediate priority
Espino told AP that her first priority is advancing a reservoir project on the Indio River, within the canal's watershed. The $1.5 billion project is meant to secure drinking water for half of Panama's 4 million people and support the canal's long-term operation.
The canal's Board of Directors had already appointed her to lead the plan, which includes community resettlement and environmental considerations. It is the largest undertaking at the canal since its expansion, completed in June 2016 at a cost of more than $5.25 billion. Officials expect the reservoir to be finished by late 2031 or 2032, the report said.
According to AP, Espino's goal is to secure the canal's future water supply without giving shipping customers reason to doubt its reliability. If customers believe the canal lacks a long-term water solution, they could shift cargo to competing routes.
The project has drawn protests from some communities and is gaining urgency as the canal faces another period of low rainfall linked to El Nino, which recently forced authorities to restrict the number of daily ship crossings between the Atlantic and the Pacific.
Geopolitical pressure from the US
As the second-highest-ranking official at the canal under outgoing administrator Ricaurte Vasquez, Espino was present through tensions caused by repeated warnings from US President Donald Trump, both before and after he took office.
Trump has threatened to retake control of the canal, citing Chinese influence over the waterway and alleging unfair treatment of US shipping companies.
Panama's judiciary has since ruled unconstitutional the port concessions at both entrances of the canal held by a Hong Kong consortium. That ruling followed the announcement of a planned acquisition of those and other ports by a US investment fund, a deal that has since stalled.
Espino told AP that her responsibility over the next seven years at the helm of the canal will be to keep operations "efficient, neutral, and transparent," and that diplomatic matters remain the responsibility of the Panamanian state.
(With inputs from AP)
