1 Country Presentation Costa Rica

Agenda Introdution History of the country Geographic location and the demography Political Structure The economy Conclusion 2

3 History  Costa Rica was colonized by Spaniards  Spanish conquistadors arrived in 16 th century  Become independent in 15 September 1821

4 Geograpy  Costa Rica is located in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, panama to the south, the Pacific Ocean to the west and south and the Caribbean Sea to the east  Costa Rica comprises 51,100 square kilometers and 589 square kilometers of territorial waters.  Costa Rica also comprises several islands, volcanoes and waterfalls

5 Demograpy  Costa Rica has an estimated population of with the following ditribuition White and mestizos 94% Black or Afro Caribbean 3% Native Americans 1% Chinese 1% Others 1%  Costa Rica hosts many refugees, mainly from Colombia an Nicaragua

6 Politics POLITICAL STRUCTURE Republic of Costa Rica ( provinces, cantons and districts ) Supreme Court into a court system There are 11main political organizations

7 The Economy Key economic information GDP per capita $11,122 Considered a developing country Poverty rate 5 to 8% Unemployment rate 8% Inflation rate (9.3% to 13.9% during ) Currency CR Colon and 1$=507 CRC

8 Traded goods Micro processor facility Coffe plantation

9 The Economy Traded goods Exports High Tec and electronics products Manufactured goods Bananas Coffee Imports Intermediate goods Consumer goods Capital goods US and China are the leading markets US and Mexico are the leading suppliers

The Economy Recently Ecotourism, Financial outsourcing and Software development became also prime industry in CR’s economy 10

Conclusion The success of this growing economy is mainly because of: High level of education; Location of the country; Lengthy political stability; Structural reforms. 11