Costa Rica

Traditional terrace farming in Costa Rica, Central America. Agriculture is the mainstay of the Costa Rican economy and most of the land is cultivated, even on the steep slopes of the Central Highlands.

Central Valley coffee region of Costa Rica, Central America. Most of Costa Rica's coffee is grown here; the climate, altitude, and soil type combine to create the optimal conditions for coffee production.

Monteverde Biological Cloud Forest Reserve, Costa Rica, Central America. The reserve comprises approximately 17,000 ha/42,000 acres of private land, owned and administered by the Tropical Science Centre of Costa Rica.

A carved stone head, Costa Rica, Central America. The natives of pre-Colombian Costa Rica were skilled in the art stone carving; the artefacts were often used in trade between the native races of Central and South America, as well as objects of gold and other metals.

A waterfall on the Tabacon river in Costa Rica. This is a volcanic area, and hot springs abound, feeding into the river network. One third of Costa Rica is given over to national parkland and nature reserves.

A picture of the coral off the coast of Costa Rica. Corals are animals, and not plants as often supposed, which live in tropical seas and frequently form reefs around islands.

Pineapple plantation, Costa Rica. Native to South and Central America, pineapples are today cultivated in tropical and subtropical areas around the world, with Thailand being the main producer. The pineapple fruit ripens five to six months after the plant begins to flower.

River running through forest, Costa Rica. Timber is a diminishing resource in Costa Rica. Large swathes of forest have been destroyed to clear land for growing crops or grazing animals. There are still some reserves of tropical hardwood and many of these have protected status.

Mountain village, Costa Rica. The country's economy is based largely on agriculture, and around 49% of the population lives in rural areas.

Rope bridge over a river, Costa Rica.

Country in Central America, bounded north by Nicaragua, southeast by Panama, east by the Caribbean Sea, and west by the Pacific Ocean.

Government

Costa Rica is a multiparty democracy with a presidential political executive. The 1949 constitution provides for a president, elected for a four-year term by universal adult suffrage, two elected vice-presidents, and an appointed cabinet. There is a single-chamber legislature, the 57-member assembly, elected through a party list system of proportional representation and also serving a four-year term. Voting is compulsory. It is one of the most stable democracies in Latin America, with unbroken democracy since 1949.

History

Originally occupied by Guaymi Indians, the area was visited by Christopher Columbus in 1502 and was colonized by Spanish settlers from the 16th century, becoming independent in 1821. Initially part of the Mexican Empire, Costa Rica became – with El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua – part of the United Provinces of Central America 1824–38. After the collapse of the federation, there followed a decade of dictatorships and constitutional conventions before Costa Rica declared itself an independent republic. While the other Central American powers were involved in frequent conflicts at this time, Costa Rica managed to remain aloof, with a few exceptions.

Following the rule of the caudillos (military leaders), the last of whom was Tomás Guardia 1870–82, Costa Rica embarked on a half-century of tranquillity and the consolidation of democracy, broken only by the brief dictatorship of Federico Tinoco Granadas 1917–19. The regime of Rafael Calderón 1940–48 saw an attempt to satisfy demands for change through social-security legislation and a new workers' code. Calderón himself was driven into exile after José Figueres Ferrer led an armed revolt following a disputed presidential election. This escalated into a 44-day civil war which claimed over 2,000 lives.

Democracy

In 1949 a new constitution abolished the army, leaving defence to the Civil Guard. José Figueres Ferrer, leader of the antigovernment forces in the previous year, became president. He cofounded the National Liberation Party (PLN), nationalized the banks, and introduced a social-security system. In 1953, he won the country's first democratic elections under its 1949 constitution.

There followed 16 years of mostly conservative rule, with the reversal of some PLN policies. 1969 a constitutional amendment restricted presidents and delegates to one term, but with delegates allowed to run again after a break of one term.

In 1974 Daniel Oduber won the presidency for the PLN. He returned to socialist policies, extended the welfare state, and established friendly relations with communist states. Communist and left-wing parties were legalized.

In 1978 Rodrigo Carazo of the conservative Unity Coalition (CU) was elected president. His presidency was marked by economic collapse and allegations of his involvement in illegal arms trafficking between Cuba and El Salvador.

The centre-left ascendant

There was a swing to the centre-left in 1982 and Luis Alberto Monge, a former trade-union official and cofounder of the PLN, won a convincing victory in the presidential election. He introduced a 100-day emergency economic programme.

The Monge government came under pressure from the USA to abandon its neutral stance and condemn the left-wing Sandinista regime in Nicaragua. Costa Rica was also urged to re-establish its army. Monge resisted and in 1983 reaffirmed his country's neutrality, but relations with Nicaragua deteriorated after border clashes between Sandinista forces and the Costa Rican Civil Guard. In 1985 Monge agreed to create a US-trained antiguerrilla guard, increasing doubts about Costa Rica's neutrality.

In 1986 Oscar Arias Sánchez became president on a neutralist platform, defeating the pro-US candidate, Rafael Angel Calderón, of the Christian Socialist Unity Party (PUSC). Arias worked tirelessly for peace in the region, hosting regional summit meetings and negotiating framework treaties. He won the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1987 for his efforts.

Swing to the right

In 1990 the centre-right Angel Calderón was elected president and embarked on a privatization programme. He was succeeded in 1994 by José Maria Figueres of the PLN, the son of the former leader José Figueres, who promised to revitalize the social welfare system and end privatization.

A conservative economist, Miguel Angel Rodriguez Echeverria of the PUSC was elected president in 1998. He revived the privatization programme and encouraged foreign investment, but strong opposition forced him to shelve plans to open up electricity and telecommunications to market competition.

In 2002 Abel Pacheco de la Espriella of the PUSC won the presidential elections after the first run-off election in the country's history. He continued with his predecessor's market-centred policies.

Return to power of Arias Sánchez

In 2003, the constitution was amended to end the ban on a president serving more than one term. This enabled Oscar Arias Sánchez to contest again for the presidency. He won the closely fought February 2006 election, after a month long manual recount, with 41% of the vote.

In October 2007, voters narrowly ratified, in a national referendum, Costa Rica's participation in the Central American-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR), despite a campaign of opposition from labour unions.

Economic diversification

Traditionally, Costa Rica's economy had been based around the production and export of coffee and bananas. But over recent decades the economy has diversified with the growth of tourism, including ecotourism, and of information technology, including developing and exporting software for major US IT companies.

Costa Rica (redirected from Tiquicia)