Country Profile
Country Profile
People
The people are friendly, courteous, and try to make visitors feel welcome. Compared with the rest of Latin America living standards in Costa Rica are nearly double that of the region. Additionally, Costa Rica's 95%literacy rate is among the worlds best and their life expectancy is greater than most Western nations
FACT: Computer chips (not coffee) are now the country's number one export.
Government
Costa Rica is a democratically elected Republic. The current President is Dr. Oscar Arias. He is the only current world leader who has already won a Nobel Peace Prize. He was instrumental in Costa Rica ratifying a free trade agreement with the United States.
Costa Rica has not had a military for over 60 years.
Population
4,200,000 of which over 75% live in the San Jose metro area, which comprises only 4% of the entire country.
Language
Spanish is the native language, but 10% of the population and all tourist towns have many English speaking Costa Ricans. Additionally, all elementary schools are mandated to teach English to students.
Climate
Almost ideal year-round, the climate is a moderate 72 degrees in the highlands, while the lowlands and coastal areas range from the low 70's to the high 90's. Rainy season occurs from the end of May to November, with the heaviest rainfall in October.The Pacific side and central parts of the country are driest from December through April with average highs between 80-85 degrees Fahrenheit and average lows between 72-75 degrees.
Because of the climate, and the ease of flying into Costa Rica, at any given time there are approximately 50,000 Americans in Costa Rica, and increasingly a large amount of Europeans. There were approximately 48,000 U.K. visitors in 2007.
Topography
Costa Rica has an incredibly diverse topography - from sea-level beaches on both the Caribbean and Pacific coasts to mountain peaks over 13,000 feet in altitude.The Caribbean coast is 132 miles long while the Pacific coast is 635 miles long.
Foreign Investment
Intel has a sizable operation here in Costa Rica, employing over 2,900 people and over 2,000 indirect workers.Intel has continued to expand their operation since they first chose Costa Rica as the site for their US$300 million testing and assembly plant, with the total accumulated investment now exceeding $700 million.Intel has stated that among their reasons for selecting Costa Rica were its highly educated workforce and political stability.Electronics is now Costa Rica's largest sector with Intel as the largest player. The industry employs 12,000 and exports US$1.65 billion in products a year. Computer chips have replaced coffee as the country's largest export.The similarities to the early days of Silicon Valley in California are not lost on potential investors.
No doubt Intel carefully considered their decision to start operations in Costa Rica. Many other multinational companies such as Microsoft, Procter & Gamble, Lucent, Bristol Myers, Abbott Labs, Chiquita Brands, Esso, Texaco, 3M, UPS, DHL, Gillette, Warner Lambert, Xerox, Glaxo Smith Kline, Johnson & Johnson, SC Johnson, Sherwin Williams, Sony Music, Pfizer, Kimberly Clark, Manpower, Dole Fresh Fruit, Colgate Palmolive, LL Bean, Alcatel, BASF, KPMG, Price Waterhouse, Deloitte & Touche, 3-Com, Motorola, Oracle, Perkins Elmer, Western Union, Unisys and Cisco Systems have made huge investments in Costa Rica.
Foreign investment in Costa Rica reached $1.4 billion in 2006 or 7% of the country's Gross Domestic Product.
The United States accounts for over 40% of their trade and, in October 2007, Costa Rica approved the Central America Free Trade Agreement, which will significantly increase the amount of investment by the United States and Canada in Costa Rica.
Utilities
Over 80% of electricity is generated from hydro-electric plants, providing inexpensive power to the country.
Satellite TV is available from two providers - SkyTV and DirecTV. Both carry ample English and international programming.
Cell phones are widely used throughout Costa Rica. GSM and TDMA networks are used in Costa Rica.
Internet service is also available for private homes and businesses through ICE (Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad), RACSA (Radiografica Costarricense), Cable Tica or AMNET.
