PROFILE

OFFICIAL NAME:

Republic of Costa Rica

Geography

Area: 51,100 sq. km (19,730 sq. mi.) about the size of the states of Vermont and New Hampshire combined.

Cities: Capital–San Jose (greater metropolitan area pop. 2.1 million, the greater metropolitan area as defined by the Ministry of Planning and Economic Policy includes the cities of Alajuela, Cartago, and Heredia). Other major cities outside the San Jose capital area–Puntarenas, Limon, and Liberia.
Terrain: A rugged, central range separates the eastern and western coastal plains.

Climate: Mild in the central highlands, tropical and subtropical in coastal areas.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective–Costa Rican(s).

Population (2006): 4.299 million.

Annual growth rate (2006 est.): 1.3%.

Ethnic groups: European and some mestizo 94%, African origin 3%, Chinese 1%, Amerindian 1%, other 1%.

Religion: Roman Catholic 70.5%, Evangelical Protestant 13.8%, other 4.3%, none 11.3%.

Languages: Spanish, with a southwestern Caribbean Creole dialect of English spoken around the Limon area.

Education: Years compulsory–9. Attendance–99% grades 1-6, 71% grades 7-9. Literacy–96%.

Health: Infant mortality rate–9.45/1,000. Life expectancy–men 74.61 yrs., women 79.94 yrs.

Work force (2006 est., 1.866 million; this official estimate excludes Nicaraguans living in Costa Rica legally and illegally): Agriculture–13%; industry–22%; services–64%.

Government

Type: Democratic republic.

Independence: September 15, 1821.

Constitution: November 7, 1949.

Branches: Executive–president (head of government and chief of state) elected for one 4-year term, two vice presidents, Cabinet (22 ministers, two of whom are also vice presidents). Legislative–57-deputy unicameral Legislative Assembly elected at 4-year intervals. Judicial–Supreme Court of Justice (22 magistrates elected by Legislative Assembly for renewable 8-year terms). The offices of the Ombudsman, Comptroller General, and Procurator General assert autonomous oversight of the government.

Subdivisions: Seven provinces, divided into 81 cantons, subdivided into 421 districts.

Political parties: National Liberation Party (PLN), Citizen’s Action Party (PAC), Libertarian Movement Party (PML), Social Christian Unity Party (PUSC), and other smaller parties.

Suffrage: Universal and compulsory at age 18.

Economy

GDP (2007): $26.23 billion.

GDP PPP (2006 est.): $52.22 billion.

Inflation (2007 est.): 10.81%.

Real growth rate (2007 est.): 7.3%.

Per capita income (2006): $5,100. (PPP $11,862, 2006 est.)

Unemployment (2007 est.): 4.6%.

Currency: Costa Rica Colon (CRC).

Natural resources: Hydroelectric power, forest products, fisheries products.

Agriculture (8.7% of GDP): Products–bananas, pineapples, coffee, beef, sugar, rice, dairy products, vegetables, fruits and ornamental plants.

Industry (28.9% of GDP): Types–electronic components, food processing, textiles and apparel, construction materials, fertilizer, medical equipment.

Commerce, tourism, and services (62.4% of GDP): Hotels, restaurants, tourist services, banks, and insurance.

Trade (2006 est.): Exports–$8.198 billion: integrated circuits, medical equipment, bananas, pineapples, coffee, melons, ornamental plants, sugar, textiles, electronic components, medical equipment. Major markets–U.S. 38.6%, China 6.8%, Hong Kong 6.4%, Netherlands 6.1%, Guatemala 4.0%. Imports–$11.576 billion: raw materials, consumer goods, capital equipment, petroleum. Major suppliers–U.S. 39.3%, Japan 5.1%, Venezuela 5.0%, Mexico 5.2%, China 4.8%, Ireland 4.5%, Brazil 3.4%.

PEOPLE

Unlike many of their Central American neighbors, present-day Costa Ricans are largely of European rather than mestizo descent; Spain was the primary country of origin. However, an estimated 10% to 15% of the population is Nicaraguan, of fairly recent arrival and primarily of mestizo origin. Descendants of 19th-century Jamaican immigrant workers constitute an English-speaking minority and–at 3% of the population–number about 119,000. Few of the native Indians survived European contact; the indigenous population today numbers about 29,000 or less than 1% of the population.

HISTORY

In 1502, on his fourth and last voyage to the New World, Christopher Columbus made the first European landfall in the area. Settlement of Costa Rica began in 1522. For nearly three centuries, Spain administered the region as part of the Captaincy General of Guatemala under a military governor. The Spanish optimistically called the country “Rich Coast.” Finding little gold or other valuable minerals in Costa Rica, however, the Spanish turned to agriculture.

The small landowners’ relative poverty, the lack of a large indigenous labor force, the population’s ethnic and linguistic homogeneity, and Costa Rica’s isolation from the Spanish colonial centers in Mexico and the Andes all contributed to the development of an autonomous and individualistic agrarian society. An egalitarian tradition also arose. This tradition survived the widened class distinctions brought on by the 19th-century introduction of banana and coffee cultivation and consequent accumulations of local wealth.

Costa Rica joined other Central American provinces in 1821 in a joint declaration of independence from Spain. Although the newly independent provinces formed a Federation, border disputes broke out among them, adding to the region’s turbulent history and conditions. Costa Rica’s northern Guanacaste Province was annexed from Nicaragua in one such regional dispute. In 1838, long after the Central American Federation ceased to function in practice, Costa Rica formally withdrew and proclaimed itself sovereign.

An era of peaceful democracy in Costa Rica began in 1899 with elections considered the first truly free and honest ones in the country’s history. This began a trend that continued until today with only two lapses: in 1917-19, Federico Tinoco ruled as a dictator, and, in 1948, Jose Figueres led an armed uprising in the wake of a disputed presidential election.

With more than 2,000 dead, the 44-day civil war resulting from this uprising was the bloodiest event in 20th-century Costa Rican history, but the victorious junta drafted a constitution guaranteeing free elections with universal suffrage and the abolition of the military. Figueres became a national hero, winning the first election under the new constitution in 1953. Since then, Costa Rica has held 14 presidential elections, the latest in 2010.