Costa Rica climbed 13 positions in the yearly world index of Net availability and access to information and communication technology by the World Economic Forum. Thus, Costa Rica places 56th –69th in 2006 and 61st in 2005– among the 122 countries studied. Now Denmark tops the list –3rd in 2006–, while the U.S. dropped from 1st to 7th. The index measures information technology availability and the ability of each country to take advantage of it.
More tourists
Minister of Tourism Carlos Benavides expects a 4 percent increase in the arrival of visitors to Costa Rica in 2007. Contrary to what had been previously said, he pointed out that tourism did not decrease in 2006; quite the contrary, he pointed out a 2.2 percent increase in the arrival of visitors. He further explained that improving conditions at the international airports and the arrival of new airlines might account for a larger increase of Costa Rica’s key activity this year.
Visas for frequent visitors
Hundreds of foreigners will be granted digital visas, valid for a year. Thus, they will not need to call on a Costa Rican consulate every time they have to come here. Immigration Service boss Mario Zamora said the new visas are safer and will benefit frequent travelers, mostly. He added that the new visa will soon be available at most key consulates.
Corporate traveling
English corporate traveling firm Hogg Robinson Group (HRG) started operations in Costa Rica. HRG investment director Roger Westwood said that the market both in Costa Rica and in the region is growing fast, thus their decision to set shop here. HRG has been 161 years in the world market, has offices in over 100 countries, and its yearly operations are close to $20 billion.
Food prices up
The prices of basic foodstuffs increase at a higher rate than the other goods and services, the National Statistics and Census Bureau (INEC in Spanish) reports. In the year ending last February, Costa Ricans faced a 14.3 percent average increase in the 45 products that are considered basic in their diet. According to Emilia Sanchez, of the Integrated Agricultural Market Program, irregular weather during most of 2006 –accounting for a decrease in crops– and the exports of foodstuffs to the Caribbean are at the root of the increase.
Smithsonian secretary
Cristian Samper, a biologist born in Costa Rica 41 years ago, is now the acting secretary –the top position– of the Smithsonian Institution. Since 2003, Samper had been director of the National Museum of Natural History, one of the Smithsonian 19 museums. Among other features, Samper has vast experience in biological diversity, based on research done in Colombia, Panama, and Costa Rica.
U.S. swindlers arrested
In an operation coordinated by the International Police (INTERPOL), Joshua J. Grimes, 29, and Michael R. Kearns, 30, were arrested at Juan Santamaria International Airport when ready to board a flight to San Andres, Colombia. The two are suspected of leading a gang that scammed a large number of people in the United States and were wanted on fraud and cash laundering charges.
Sinaloa Cartel
Official sources have now confirmed that the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the most powerful and bloody drug organizations in Mexico, controlled the trafficking of cocaine on the Costa Rican Pacific Ocean. The criminal organization had enlisted local fishermen, who received the drug, bound for the U.S., from Colombians and carried it on Costa Rican boats to Guatemala and Mexico. U.S. and Costa Rica anti-drug joint operations have dismembered most of the branch of the organization here, according to Tico police sources.
Orchids endangered
A large number of the 30,000 species of orchids in the world are threatened with extinction, as a result of damage to their habitat, climate change, and the ignorance of people regarding their growing and handling. These data surfaced in recent days, when over 175 experts from 30 countries discussed orchids in Costa Rica, which is home to 5 percent –some 1,400 species– of the world’s orchids.
Good perception of President
After nine months in office, the opinions on Dr. Oscar Arias remain good. The opinions of those who rate his performance “Good” to “Very good” outnumber those who say it is “Bad” to “Very bad” three to one. This surfaced in a UNIMER survey of public opinion for the daily La Nación. The findings also include an increase in the rate of confidence in the Government. But, contrary to the President’s good ratings, the ministers of his cabinet and the deputies to the Legislative Assembly lag far behind.
Fiscal deficit drops 70 percent
Generally speaking, the fiscal deficit of Costa Rica decreased 70 percent in the last 12 months, as a result of improved tax collection and a slower increase rhythm in expenses, the Minister of Finance Guillermo Zúñiga disclosed. He explained that revenues increased 14 percent, while expenses went 8.5 percent up. However, Minister Zúñiga regretted the fact that, because the Government has to pay high interests on its debt, investment on public works is limited.
Environmental services
The United States will swap $12.6 million of the standing Costa Rican bilateral debt for environmental services, Minister of Foreign Affairs Bruno Stagno announced. This represents some 13 percent of the current Tico debt to the U.S. The payment for environmental services is a voluntary mechanism consisting in paying $10 per ton of carbon emissions for the conservation of natural areas and for reforestation. Minister Stagno asserted that this is excellent news because it means Costa Rica is again subject of international cooperation and because the U.S. decision ratifies the leadership of Costa Rica in the conservation and protection of nature, particularly forests.
The Queen of Jordan
Queen Noor of Jordan celebrated, with 120 young people from 68 nations, the establishment of the first College of the United World in Latin America, located in Santa Ana, west of San José. One of 12 of its kind around the world, the school is dedicated to training leaders for peace. In her inauguration speech, Queen Noor said that in a world under siege by conflict, violence, and environmental disaster, more and more colleges that dedicate to peace, protection of the environment and cultural tolerance are necessary. The daughter of a U.S. Arab and his Swede wife, the Queen, 52, captivated the audience.
99% of Intel processors made here
Intel manufactures in Costa Rica 99 percent of the processors for word servers that the firm distributes around the world. Those processors are used in aviation, banks, airports, stock exchanges, and communication networks, among other sectors. The server market is strategic for Intel because it is the product that generates the highest profit margin for the firm, according to Intel Costa Rica manager Mohsen Fazlian.
Sex with children
Billboards in English, strategically placed along the roads leading to tourist resorts, warn visitors that Costa Rica will pursue and prosecute adults who engage in sex with children under 18. This is part of an effort to fight the definition of Costa Rica as a sex tourism destination. The billboards are part of a crusade by World Vision, and they are evident also in other countries, such as Mexico, Brazil, and Thailand.
$30-million hotel and casino
U.S. firm Thunderbird Resorts will invest $30 million in a hotel and casino in Tres Ríos, east of San José. A 150-room four-star hotel will be the centerpiece of a resort including three restaurants, three entertainment areas, and a convention center for 2,000 people. The guests will also enjoy a butterfly garden and bird-watching in the 40 hectares (99 acres) which are home to the development.
New airlines
Starting April 5th, U.S. low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines will operate a daily flight between Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Juan Santamaría International Airport. In June, the Spanish carrier Air Comet will fly three times a week between Madrid and Costa Rica, taking from 3,900 to 4,800 the seats available per week between Europe and Costa Rica. Also, the British carrier First Choice will operate two flights a week between London and Liberia, in the Costa Rican northwest Pacific, carrying 312 passengers at a time.
From Africa
Elands, giraffes, camels, Watusi cattle, and antelopes are part of 28 African animals that have just been added to the Africa Mia Park, located near Liberia, in Guanacaste. There visitors enjoy sighting the many different species in a natural environment, one which closely resembles the African savannah.
Orchid capital of the world Over 175 researchers from all over the world meet in Costa Rica to discuss the current state and the future of orchids in the planet. The experts attending the 3rd International Congress on the Preservation of Orchids are to analyze some one hundred studies on the topic. They aim at finding the factors that threaten orchids around the world, in order to define strategies for their restoration and preservation. Even though there are 30,000 species of orchids around the world –1,400 of them in Costa Rica alone–, all of them suffer some degree of extinction. The preceding congresses were held at Perth University, in Australia, and Marie Selby Botanical Gardens in Florida. |
World reforestation example
Forests around the world decreased 3 percent between 1990 and 2005. However, Costa Rica was one of the very few countries that can boast of a recovery of tree coverage. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization included this fact in a report on the world’s forests printed in Rome. The survey acknowledges that Costa Rica recovered a forest area amounting to 10 percent of its land in the last 20 years. Julio Calvo, from the Costa Rican Institute of Technology, added that a survey by the University of Alberta, Canada, confirms the Costa Rica success in increasing the forested areas.
Undecided about CAFTA
Four in every ten Costa Ricans are undecided about the Central America-Dominican Republic-United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). According to a survey by UNIMER for the daily La Nación, 39 percent Costa Ricans would rather have further discussion on the issue, 35 percent are in favor of approving it, and 26 percent are totally against it. Meanwhile, the positive appreciation of the CAFTA is also decreasing. This is confirmed by the fact that, in September 2006, 51 percent of the citizens expected positive effects from the Agreement, while the figure is now down to 37 percent. In the meantime, the CAFTA is already under way in the other Central American nations and the Dominican Republic.
Aid from Gates
President Oscar Arias said that he will hold an interview with Microsoft boss Bill Gates on March 19. He will do so in Cartagena, Colombia, where Gates will also meet Colombian President Alvaro Uribe. President Arias will ask Gates –the wealthiest man in the world, according to Forbes—for aid destined to Costa Rican schools.
Protection for the leatherback
Some 200 scientists and environmentalists from all over the world asked President Oscar Arias for help to preserve the leatherback turtle. They did so in a letter requesting a larger commitment of the country to protect the nesting sites of the leatherback at Las Baulas National Marine Park, Playa Grande, near Tamarindo Beach. The leatherback is on the brink of extinction; its population has suffered a 90 percent reduction over the last 20 years. Playa Grande is the major nesting site for the leatherback in the East Pacific Ocean, and the fourth at world level.
The most women in Congress
In Congress, women occupy 38.6 percent of the seats, thus making Costa Rica the second country in the world with the largest female representation in the Legislative. It is surpassed only by Sweden, with 47.5 percent. At world level, women account for 16.7 percent of people at congress.
Congressmen’s popularity low
While a vast majority of Costa Ricans know that former soccer star Hernan Medford is the head coach of the National Team, only very few of them can quote the name of a congressman or a minister of the Arias Administration. A UNIMER survey for the daily La Nación found that while 89 percent of the people know who Medford is, only 7 percent know that Federico Tinoco is a congressman. Moreover, the latter’s name is mostly known because of his involvement in a sexual harassment case.
Growing demand for horses
The exports of the “Iberoamericana” breed, fully developed in Costa Rica are 95 to 120 horses a year, sources of the breeders said. On the other hand, the domestic market reaches some 250 horses, with prices ranging between $10,000 and $35,000 each. These animals feature strength and beauty and are very active, thus attracting buyers both locally and abroad, , according to the sources.
Top banana productivity Last year, Costa Rica harvested an average 2,524 boxes of bananas per hectare (2.471 acres), thus retaining the first place in banana productivity per area. Colombia placed second, at 1,724 boxes, and Ecuador third, at 1,400 boxes. Weather and soil, excellent labor and, particularly, technology combine to achieve the first position in the globe. That leadership was strengthened in 2006 with the production for the year, when 107.4 million 18.14-kilo (39.4-lb.) boxes were sold abroad. In 2005, exports had suffered a heavy blow and dropped to 88.7 million boxes. If this indicator were used, then the hike in 2006 was 21 percent. Sources at the National Banana Corporation, the top organization in the field, pointed out that the local labor is at the core of the success, and added that banana workers here enjoy several pluses, that make their conditions of living the best, by far, for farm workers. Also, they are constantly trained, another of the facts that account for the highest banana yield in the world. |
Dependence on foreign investment
In an increasing fashion, the economic stability of Costa Rica depends on direct foreign investment. Every year, the funds from that source cover a larger chunk of the current account deficit, which is the difference between the amount the country pays for imported goods and the income from sales and services abroad. In 2006, the amount paid for imports was $1,088 million higher than the one of the goods and services sold abroad. The difference was equal to 5 percent of the Gross Domestic Product, the second highest in Latin America and the Caribbean. Without the dollars from direct foreign investment, there would have been pressure to further devaluate the colon, analysts say.
Improved security for cruise ships
Minister of Security Fernando Berrocal announced that the number of police officers and patrol cars will be double at the ports of Limon and Puntarenas when cruise ships call. This will be so in order to improve the security for visitors. Recently, three men tried to rob13 tourists from a cruise ship, while riding a van in the Limon area. In the struggle, a tourist killed one of the attackers, but authorities let the visitor go back to the boat and continue his cruise. This is the sort of events that must be prevented, Minister Berrocal said.
Peaceful rally
Unarmed policemen were in charge of security of a rally staged in San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica, by those who oppose the Central America-Dominican Republic-United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). While thousands marched in the downtown area to gather in front of Congress, they sang and shouted against the Agreement, which they consider will be highly negative for Costa Rica, particularly for small farmers, while benefiting only U.S. corporations. While the other Central American nations did not question the conditions of the CAFTA and ratified it, many Costa Ricans believe the deal is not a positive one for their country and have reiterated their decision to keep on fighting it.
First smart city
The city of Heredia, some 6 miles north of San Jose, will be the first in Costa Rica to be digital, thanks to a cooperation agreement with Ariel, a smart city in Israel. The chairman of the Heredia city council, Manuel Zumbado, and the Mayor of Ariel, Ron Nachman, made the announcement. “Through this initiative, in the mid term, we plan to have digital cameras in every corner in Heredia, in order to control traffic, and also to prevent crime,” Zumbado said. An intranet, Internet by telephone, and many other features are part of the project, according to the Israeli official.
50 percent less leatherback nests
The last nesting season of leatherback turtles at the Las Baulas National Marine Park in Guanacaste, on the Costa Rican northwestern Pacific, is a source of worry for environmental authorities and organizations, since the number of arrivals decreased by 50 percent, as compared to the preceding season. Wardens counted only 58 individuals of the endangered species, while in the preceding season there had been 124 sightings. The worries can be fully understood when one takes into account that this is the most important leatherback spawning site in the Eastern Pacific and the fourth worldwide.
5.5 million trees will be planted
Costa Rica is going step by step in her efforts to fight global warming, said Roberto Villalobos, the coordinator for the Climate Change Program at the National Meteorological Institution. Among the measures, Villalobos pointed out that 5.5 million trees will be planted throughout the nation. “We are not rushing, in spite of the urgency,” the official added.
Chavez shuts down plant here President Hugo Chavez confirmed that he will shut down the Venezuelan state aluminum plant Alunasa in Costa Rica. The Venezuelan head of state claimed geopolitical, economic, and technical reasons to move the plant from Esparza, in the province of Puntarenas, elsewhere. However, he admitted later that he was not pleased with comments the President of Costa Rica Oscar Arias has made. “The President of Costa Rica enjoys meddling in things he should not. Recently, he said that there is a dictatorship here, in Venezuela. How does he pretend, then, that we have good relations?,” Chavez said. He claimed that Dr. Arias wants to please Washington. The shutting out of Alunasa means 400 direct jobs and over 2,000 indirect ones will be lost in a very poor area of Costa Rica. The plant currently manufactures some 9,000 tons of aluminum, 80 percent of which are exported to the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. |
Government’s revenues improve
Regarding finances, the Government of Costa Rica started on the right foot this year. In January, the taxes collected were 43 percent more than the ones in the same month last year. If the increase in the cost of living in that period is deducted, the increase is still 31 percent. On the other hand, expenses increased 16 percent –inflation not included– between January 2006 and the same month this year. According to Minister of Finance Guillermo Zuniga, the increase in spending is explained because the number of people hired and the transfers to higher learning institutions were larger. However, he pointed out that the Government will spend more on education, infrastructure, law enforcement, science, and technology.
Exports 18.82 percent up
Costa Rica exported $8.366 billion from February 2006 to January 2007, 18.82 percent more than the cumulate sales abroad in the same period for 2005-6, when they reached $7.041 billion. The United States, at 42 percent, was the leading buyer, followed by China (21 percent), Holland (4.6 percent), and Guatemala (4.1 percent). The Ministry of Foreign Trade announced that it has launched a survey among exporters, in order to define strategies leading to the goal of exporting $18 billion by the year 2010.
Wal-Mart invests $50 million
Wal-Mart Central America announced that it is investing $50 million in Costa Rica this year. The chief executive for Latin America, Craig Herkert, met with President Oscar Arias and made the announcement. He explained that most of the funds will go into another 14 supermarkets, a couple of large ones and a majority of small outlets throughout the country. Wal-Mart’s corporate matters director here, Aquileo Sanchez, said that this will mean that the firm will open another 1,500 jobs, taking to 9,000 the current payroll here.
300 tourism investors
More than 300 investors from the United States and Europe attended the Second Tourism Investment Exchange in Costa Rica. They scouted business opportunities in housing and leisure developments, both on the Caribbean and the Pacific coasts, mainly. Some of the hotel chains attending were Wyneham Hotels Group, Hyatt, Marriot, Eurostar from Spain, and Club Med from France. President Oscar Arias met with the investors and asked them not to limit themselves to make taller buildings but to include in their plans improving the lot of Costa Ricans.
U.S. Senator visited Chang’s lab
Bill Nelson, U.S. Senator and former NASA astronaut, displayed major interest in the plasma engine that is being built at the Ad Astra Rocket Laboratory, in Guanacaste, and which is led by Costa Rica born and former NASA astronaut Franklin Chang. Chang showed Nelson the progress that has been made in research and how plasma –the fourth state of matter– is generated from argon gas. Senator Nelson pointed out the importance of the plasma engine to achieve such things as a 29-day trip to Mars. He pointed out that the Chang project is an example of U.S.-Costa Rica cooperation. Nelson chairs the Senate’s Committee on Space Matters.
Urban forest
Through a new reforestation project, San Jose aims at becoming an urban forest, a city full of trees, that displays rich biodiversity and whose parks are a fine example of tropical lushness. The ambitious initiative is a project of the Institute of Tropical Architecture, to improve not only that area but also the quality of living in the capital city of Costa Rica. The San Jose Municipality accepted the project and will fund it, an area in which other institutions will chip in.
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