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Echar Pa’lante

In Panama, “echar pa’lante” is an everyday expression for the decision to keep moving forward when circumstances are difficult. It does not mean ignoring adversity or denying what has happened. It means acknowledging reality and recovering the capacity to act: identifying the next possible step, starting again, and continuing forward.

The complementary expression “vamos con to’” adds determination and energy to the same idea. It conveys the moment when, after deciding to move forward, a person or community commits fully to the effort ahead.

These expressions are not presented as uniquely Panamanian. Their relevance lies in the way they are used in everyday Panamanian speech to give language to a recognizable mechanism of resilience: acknowledging difficulty, recovering the capacity to act, and moving forward.

Resilience Mechanism

At its core is the recovery of agency — the capacity to act. Faced with loss, economic hardship, family difficulties, or a period of uncertainty, “echar pa’lante” turns adversity into a practical question: What can I do now with what is happening to me?

The answer may be to look for a new job, learn a trade, start a business, reorganize family life, seek support, or help someone else begin again. The expression therefore describes resilience not as passive endurance, but as the transition from impact to action.

In Panama, another everyday expression describes the strength that is often needed before we can move forward: “tener la piel gruesa” — literally, “to have thick skin” — or, as we say more colloquially, “aguantar cuero.”

We use it to describe the ability to face criticism, pressure, questioning, comments, or even ridicule without allowing what comes from outside to determine our self-worth, our decisions, or to paralyze us.

It does not mean that nothing affects us. Nor does it mean ceasing to feel, accepting what is wrong, or becoming insensitive. It means learning to distinguish between what we should listen to and what we should not allow to have the power to decide for us.

In this sense, “tener la piel gruesa” represents an initial moment of resilience: withstanding the impact without losing who we are or our capacity to act. Then comes the next step: “echar pa’lante” — recovering direction and continuing forward.

What It Means

Although its primary dimension is individual, the concept also has a strong community dimension.

“Echar pa’lante” is often used to encourage others, and moving forward frequently depends on the support of family, community, and institutions.

This leads to a broader understanding: resilience is not solely the responsibility of the individual. A resilient society must also create the relationships, opportunities, and conditions that enable people to get back on their feet and continue. In this sense, individual agency and collective support reinforce one another.

How It Works in a Crisis

In Panama, the expression is used to speak about people who work, undertake new ventures, support their families, learn new skills, begin again after a loss, and face everyday difficulties without giving up.

A documented example appears in reflections on Panama’s recovery following the most difficult years of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, José Ramón Icaza C., then President of the Chamber of Commerce,

Industries and Agriculture of Panama, linked education, work, entrepreneurship, and citizen initiative to the idea of “echar pa’lante.” The expression is not a public policy; its value lies in giving a name to an attitude that leads to action after adversity.

  • What happens

    We face loss, hardship or uncertainty

  • What we focus on

    Recovering our capacity to act and identifying the next possible step

  • How we act

    We acknowledge reality, withstand its impact and move forward, individually and together with others

  • What it gives

    It restores a sense of agency and helps us continue moving forward

A Lesson for Other Countries

Resilience does not always begin with a major action.

Sometimes it begins when a person recovers the sense that there is still something they can do, even in circumstances they cannot fully control.

Panama’s contribution can be summarized in a simple sequence: allowing ourselves to feel and acknowledge the difficulty; withstanding its impact without allowing it to decide our future; recovering the capacity to act; and finding the next possible step, individually and together with others.

In Panama, we say: “Hay que echar pa’lante.”

And when the time comes to move forward with determination: “¡Vamos con to’!”

Limits of the Concept

“Echar pa’lante” and “vamos con to’” should not be described as expressions exclusive to Panama.

Similar forms circulate in other Spanish-speaking communities. The recommended formulation is “In Panama, we say…”, with the emphasis placed on the resilience mechanism these expressions convey within everyday Panamanian speech.

The concept should not be presented as an inherent characteristic of all Panamanians or used to romanticize hardship. Rather, it describes a familiar way of expressing perseverance, initiative, and action in the face of adversity.

“Tener la piel gruesa” / “aguantar cuero” is included only as a complementary metaphor for resistance, not as Panama’s principal National Concept of Resilience. It should not be interpreted as tolerating abuse, violence, discrimination, harassment, or mistreatment. For an international audience, its meaning should be conveyed conceptually rather than through a literal translation of “aguantar cuero.”

For institutional purposes, Panama’s proposed National Concept of Resilience is “Echar pa’lante.” “Vamos con to’” is presented as a complementary expression of determination and hope.

Dictionary Links

  • Dârzenie

  • Nintai

  • Sisu

  • Still deh yah

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