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Background:
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Costa Rica
is a Central American success story: since the late 19th
century, only two brief periods of violence have marred
its democratic development. Although still a largely
agricultural country, it has expanded its economy to
include strong technology and tourism sectors. The
standard of living is relatively high. Land ownership is
widespread.
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Location:
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Central
America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North
Pacific Ocean, between Nicaragua and Panama |
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Geographic coordinates:
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10 00 N, 84
00 W |
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Map references:
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Central
America and the Caribbean |
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Area:
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total:
51,100 sq km
land: 50,660 sq km
water: 440 sq km
note: includes Isla del Coco |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly
smaller than West Virginia |
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Land boundaries:
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total:
639 km
border countries: Nicaragua 309 km, Panama 330 km |
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Coastline:
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1,290 km |
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Maritime claims:
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territorial
sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm |
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Climate:
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tropical
and subtropical; dry season (December to April); rainy
season (May to November); cooler in highlands |
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Terrain:
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coastal
plains separated by rugged mountains including over 100
volcanic cones, of which several are major volcanoes |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest
point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Cerro Chirripo 3,810 m |
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Natural resources:
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hydropower |
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Land use:
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arable
land: 4.41%
permanent crops: 5.88%
other: 89.71% (2001) |
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Irrigated land:
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1,260 sq km
(1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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occasional
earthquakes, hurricanes along Atlantic coast; frequent
flooding of lowlands at onset of rainy season and
landslides; active volcanoes |
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Environment - current issues:
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deforestation
and land use change, largely a result of the clearing of
land for cattle ranching and agriculture; soil erosion;
coastal marine pollution; fisheries protection; solid
waste management; air pollution |
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Environment - international agreements:
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party
to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate
Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes,
Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection,
Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life
Conservation |
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Geography - note:
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four
volcanoes, two of them active, rise near the capital of
San Jose in the center of the country; one of the
volcanoes, Irazu, erupted destructively in 1963-65
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Population:
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4,016,173
(July 2005 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14
years: 28.9% (male 593,540/female 566,361)
15-64 years: 65.5% (male 1,330,481/female
1,300,664)
65 years and over: 5.6% (male 104,564/female
120,563) (2005 est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
26.03 years
male: 25.59 years
female: 26.5 years (2005 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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1.48% (2005
est.) |
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Birth rate:
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18.6
births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Death rate:
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4.33
deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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0.5
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at
birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
9.95 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.85 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 9 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 76.84 years
male: 74.26 years
female: 79.55 years (2005 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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2.28
children born/woman (2005 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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0.6% (2003
est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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12,000
(2003 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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900 (2003
est.) |
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Nationality:
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noun:
Costa Rican(s)
adjective: Costa Rican |
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Ethnic groups:
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white
(including mestizo) 94%, black 3%, Amerindian 1%,
Chinese 1%, other 1% |
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Religions:
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Roman
Catholic 76.3%, Evangelical 13.7%, Jehovah's Witnesses
1.3%, other Protestant 0.7%, other 4.8%, none 3.2% |
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Languages:
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Spanish
(official), English |
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Literacy:
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definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96%
male: 95.9%
female: 96.1% (2003 est.)
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Country name:
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conventional
long form: Republic of Costa Rica
conventional short form: Costa Rica
local long form: Republica de Costa Rica
local short form: Costa Rica |
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Government type:
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democratic
republic |
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Capital:
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San Jose |
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Administrative divisions:
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7 provinces
(provincias, singular - provincia); Alajuela, Cartago,
Guanacaste, Heredia, Limon, Puntarenas, San Jose |
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Independence:
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15
September 1821 (from Spain) |
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National holiday:
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Independence
Day, 15 September (1821) |
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Constitution:
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7 November
1949 |
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Legal system:
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based on
Spanish civil law system; judicial review of legislative
acts in the Supreme Court; has accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction |
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Suffrage:
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18 years of
age; universal and compulsory |
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Executive branch:
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chief of
state: President Abel PACHECO (since 8 May 2002);
First Vice President Lineth SABORIO (since 8 May 2002);
Second Vice President Luis FISHMAN (since 8 May 2002);
note - the president is both the chief of state and head
of government
head of government: President Abel PACHECO (since
8 May 2002); First Vice President Lineth SABORIO (since
8 May 2002); Second Vice President Luis FISHMAN (since 8
May 2002); note - the president is both the chief of
state and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet selected by the president
elections: president and vice presidents elected
on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms;
election last held 3 February 2002; run-off election
held 7 April 2002 (next to be held February 2006)
election results: Abel PACHECO elected president;
percent of vote - Abel PACHECO (PUSC) 58%; Rolando ARAYA
(PLN) 42% |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral
Legislative Assembly or Asamblea Legislativa (57 seats;
members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve
four-year terms)
elections: last held 3 February 2002 (next to be
held 3 February 2006)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%;
seats by party - PUSC 19, PLN 17, PAC 14, PML 6, PRC 1;
note - seats by party as of January 2005 - PUSC 19, PLN
16, PAC 8, PML 5, PRC 1, Patriotic Union 3, Homeland
First 1, Authentic Member from Heredia 1, Democratic
National Alliance 1, independent 2 |
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme
Court or Corte Suprema (22 justices are elected for
eight-year terms by the Legislative Assembly) |
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Political parties and leaders:
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Authentic
Member from Heredia [Jose SALAS]; Citizen Action Party
or PAC [Otton SOLIS]; Costa Rican Renovation Party or
PRC [Justo OROZCO]; Democratic Force Party or PFD [Juan
Carlos CHAVES Mora]; Democratic National Alliance [Emilia
RODRIGUEZ]; General Union Party or PUGEN [Carlos Alberto
FERNANDEZ Vega]; Homeland First [Juan Jose VARGAS];
Independent Worker Party or PIO [Jose Alberto CUBERO
Carmona]; Libertarian Movement Party or PML [Otto
GUEVARA Guth]; National Christian Alliance Party or ANC
[Victor GONZALEZ]; National Integration Party or PIN
[Walter MUNOZ Cespedes]; National Liberation Party or
PLN [Francisco Antonio PACHECO]; National Patriotic
Party or PPN [Daniel Enrique REYNOLDS Vargas]; National
Rescue Party or PRN [Carlos VARGAS Solano]; Patriotic
Union [Humberto ARCE]; Popular Vanguard [Trino BARRANTES
Araya]; Social Christian Unity Party or PUSC [Lorena
VASQUEZ Badilla] |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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Authentic
Confederation of Democratic Workers or CATD (Communist
Party affiliate); Chamber of Coffee Growers;
Confederated Union of Workers or CUT (Communist Party
affiliate); Costa Rican Confederation of Democratic
Workers or CCTD (Liberation Party affiliate); Federation
of Public Service Workers or FTSP; National Association
for Economic Development or ANFE; National Association
of Educators or ANDE; Rerum Novarum or CTRN (PLN
affiliate) [Gilbert Brown] |
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International organization participation:
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BCIE, CACM,
FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU,
ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol,
IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM
(observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO,
WTO |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of
mission: Ambassador Tomas DUENAS
chancery: 2114 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 234-2945
FAX: [1] (202) 265-4795
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston,
Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San
Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico), and Tampa
consulate(s): Austin |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief of
mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires
Douglas M. BARNES
embassy: Calle 120 Avenida O, Pavas, San Jose
mailing address: APO AA 34020
telephone: [506] 220-3939
FAX: [506] 519-2305 |
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Flag description:
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five
horizontal bands of blue (top), white, red (double
width), white, and blue, with the coat of arms in a
white elliptical disk on the hoist side of the red band;
above the coat of arms a light blue ribbon contains the
words, AMERICA CENTRAL, and just below it near the top
of the coat of arms is a white ribbon with the words,
REPUBLICA COSTA RICA
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Economy - overview:
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Costa
Rica's basically stable economy depends on tourism,
agriculture, and electronics exports. Poverty has been
substantially reduced over the past 15 years, and a
strong social safety net has been put into place.
Foreign investors remain attracted by the country's
political stability and high education levels, and
tourism continues to bring in foreign exchange. Low
prices for coffee and bananas have hurt the agricultural
sector. The government continues to grapple with its
large deficit and massive internal debt. The reduction
of inflation remains a difficult problem because of
rises in the price of imports, labor market rigidities,
and fiscal deficits. The country also needs to reform
its tax system and its pattern of public expenditure.
Costa Rica recently concluded negotiations to
participate in the US-Central American Free Trade
Agreement, which, if ratified by the Costa Rican
Legislature, would result in economic reforms and an
improved investment climate. |
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GDP:
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purchasing
power parity - $37.97 billion (2004 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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3.9% (2004
est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing
power parity - $9,600 (2004 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture:
8.5%
industry: 29.7%
services: 61.8% (2004 est.) |
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Investment (gross fixed):
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19.2% of
GDP (2004 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
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18% (2004
est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest
10%: 1.1%
highest 10%: 36.8% (2002) |
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Distribution of family income - Gini index:
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45.9 (1997) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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11.5% (2004
est.) |
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Labor force:
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1.81
million (2004 est.) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture
20%, industry 22%, services 58% (1999 est.) |
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Unemployment rate:
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6.6% (2004
est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues:
$2.497 billion
expenditures: $3.094 billion, including capital
expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
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Public debt:
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58% of GDP
(2004 est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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coffee,
pineapples, bananas, sugar, corn, rice, beans, potatoes;
beef; timber |
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Industries:
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microprocessors,
food processing, textiles and clothing, construction
materials, fertilizer, plastic products |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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3.1% (2004
est.) |
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Electricity - production:
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6.614
billion kWh (2002) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil
fuel: 1.5%
hydro: 81.9%
nuclear: 0%
other: 16.6% (2001) |
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Electricity - consumption:
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5.733
billion kWh (2002) |
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Electricity - exports:
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477 million
kWh (2002) |
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Electricity - imports:
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59 million
kWh (2002) |
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Oil - production:
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0 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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37,000
bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - exports:
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NA |
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Oil - imports:
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NA |
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Current account balance:
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$-980.3
million (2004 est.) |
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Exports:
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$6.184
billion (2004 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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coffee,
bananas, sugar; pineapples; textiles, electronic
components, medical equipment |
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Exports - partners:
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US 23.7%,
Netherlands 7.7%, UK 6.6% (2004) |
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Imports:
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$7.842
billion (2004 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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raw
materials, consumer goods, capital equipment, petroleum |
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Imports - partners:
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US 35.5%,
Japan 4.8%, Mexico 3.7% (2004) |
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Reserves of foreign exchange & gold:
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$1.736
billion (2004 est.) |
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Debt - external:
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$5.962
billion (2004 est.) |
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Currency:
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Costa Rican
colon (CRC) |
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Currency code:
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CRC |
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Exchange rates:
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Costa Rican
colones per US dollar - 437.91 (2004), 398.66 (2003),
359.82 (2002), 328.87 (2001), 308.19 (2000) |
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Fiscal year:
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calendar
year
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| Communications |
Costa
Rica |
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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1.132
million (2002) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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528,047
(2002) |
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Telephone system:
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general
assessment: good domestic telephone service in terms
of breadth of coverage; restricted cellular telephone
service
domestic: point-to-point and point-to-multi-point
microwave, fiber-optic, and coaxial cable link rural
areas; Internet service is available
international: country code - 506; connected to
Central American Microwave System; satellite earth
stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); two submarine
cables (1999) |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 65, FM
51, shortwave 19 (2002) |
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Radios:
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980,000
(1997) |
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Television broadcast stations:
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20 (plus 43
repeaters) (2002) |
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Televisions:
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525,000
(1997) |
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Internet country code:
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.cr |
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Internet hosts:
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10,826
(2003) |
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Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
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3 (of which
only one is legal) (2000) |
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Internet users:
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800,000
(2002)
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| Transportation |
Costa
Rica |
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Railways:
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total:
950 km
narrow gauge: 950 km 1.067-m gauge (260 km
electrified) (2003) |
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Highways:
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total:
35,303 km
paved: 4,236 km
unpaved: 31,067 km (2002) |
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Waterways:
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730 km
(seasonally navigable by small craft) (2004) |
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Pipelines:
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refined
products 242 km (2004) |
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Ports and harbors:
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Caldera,
Golfito, Moin, Puerto Limon, Puerto Quepos, Puntarenas |
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Merchant marine:
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total:
2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,716 GRT/ DWT
by type: passenger/cargo 2 (2005) |
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Airports:
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149 (2004
est.) |
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total:
30
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 18
under 914 m: 8 (2004 est.) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
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total:
119
914 to 1,523 m: 24
under 914 m: 95 (2004 est.)
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Military branches:
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no regular
military forces; Ministry of Public Security,
Government, and Police |
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Military manpower - military age and obligation:
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18 years of
age (2004) |
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Military manpower - availability:
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males
age 18-49: 997,690 (2005 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military service:
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males
age 18-49: 829,874 (2005 est.) |
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Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
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males:
41,097 (2005 est.) |
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Military expenditures - dollar figure:
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$64.2
million (2004) |
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Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
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0.4% (2003)
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| Transnational
Issues |
Costa
Rica |
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Disputes - international:
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legal
dispute over navigational rights of Rio San Juan on the
border with Nicaragua remains unresolved |
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