Nearly 3,000 commercial stores in this restaurant sector have seen their sales drop by up to 100%, which worries restaurant owners who have now opened with delivery or home delivery modalities, maintaining all the sanitation measures required by the Ministry of Health.

Domingo de Obaldía, president of the Association of Restaurants and Related of Panama (Arap), said that 20% of the restaurants affiliated to the association have opened a delivery only business. This has allowed them to alleviate the crisis, although their sales down 30%.

Companies dedicated to home delivery charge a charge between 20% to 30% on the billing of the total account and also the cost for shipping, which for restaurant owners is unfair in this time of crisis in the country.

"Right now they should consider an adjustment because we are all going through a difficult situation and what this does is that consumers do not want to buy because of high cost," said de Obaldía.

According to the Glovo company, at this moment they register a growth of 47% in the number of orders in the last month in Panama and in Central America by 25%. The categories that have grown the most are supermarkets, followed by restaurants.

The number of restaurants that use home delivery model will grow over time. However, to the extent that other sectors do not enter work (6 hours or 8 hours) there will be no growth in restaurant sales, said de Olbadía.

Even restaurant and bar workers have already begun to feel the effects, because their salaries have been suspended, leaving them in financial limbo without being able to pay their commitments such as renting a home, paying for public services, among others.

Currently, more than 80% of restaurants are closed, including high-end restaurants, fast food, among others, and more than 20,000 workers have suspended contracts.

De Obaldia also stressed that as time passes, the resources of the companies are already running out and for this month of May and making the next payments will be difficult.

Entrepreneurs fear that when they reopen their businesses they will have exorbitant debts.

The 2,600 restaurants in the city generate about 700 million dollars, including hotel restaurants that are also closed.

"The world we knew will never be the same again, however this will gradually be fixed when the activities start operating again," he explained.

According to Abdiel Celis, owner of the PesKito restaurant, some restaurants are very strong and others are not because they have never implemented this modality and have to partner with companies that are exclusively dedicated to home delivery.

"Opening with the home delivery model has its advantages and disadvantages, so most do not take the risk," he said.

Celis also agrees with De Obaldía that companies that are dedicated to delivery's in Panama should be more aware of the percentage of profits.

So far the sector reports losses of more than $80 million.