Following Changes at the Top of the Ministry of Education in Panama, a Third Deputy Minister Resigns

Following the sudden resignation of Panama’s Minister of Education, Lucy Molinar, on August 12, 2026, amid intense scrutiny over laptop procurement contracts, the leadership team faced a cascading collapse as three deputy ministers sequentially stepped down from the Ministry of Education (MEDUCA).

Overview of Resignations

• Delia Marcela Herrera as pictured below – First to resign, leaving her post as Deputy Minister of Infrastructure in February 2026.

• Roberto Elías Sevillano Shin pictured below – Resigned as Administrative Deputy Minister on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, just prior to the minister’s departure.

• Agustina De León de Cotes pictured below – Followed as the third departure, resigning from her position as Academic Deputy Minister on Friday, August 14, 2026.

Context and Fallout

• The Trigger: Minister Lucy Molinar stepped down after 25 months in office following heavy political and public blowback regarding multi-million dollar contracts for purchasing teacher laptops and stalled student computer bids.

• Administrative Vacuum: The near-total resignation of the top executive and all primary vice ministers leaves the entire leadership structure of the ministry cleared out, prompting urgent public and legislative attention on the restructuring of national education policy.

The Academic Vice Minister of the Ministry of Education (Meduca), Agnes De León de Cotes, submitted her resignation this Friday, August 14, one day after the arrival of Ventura Vega Osorio as the new head of the institution. De León de Cotes is the third deputy minister to resign from her post and was part of the team of former Education Minister Lucy Molinar, who resigned on August 12, after 25 months in charge of the education portfolio, amid questions about the purchase of laptops. 

Cotes, who has extensive experience in the education sector, held the position of Academic Vice Minister of Education until Friday, August 14, a position she had held since the beginning of President José Raúl Mulino’s administration.  Her departure adds to the changes in the Ministry of Education’s leadership structure following Molinar’s resignation and Vega’s appointment as minister. Specifically, on Tuesday, August 11, the Deputy Minister of Administration, Roberto Sevillano, resigned.  The first to resign from the Meduca team was Delia Marcela Herrera, who served as Vice Minister of Infrastructure and left the position last February.  So far, the Ministry of Education has not officially stated the reasons for De León de Cotes’ resignation.