:Costa Rica Geography
Total area:
51,100 km2
Land area:
50,660 km2; includes Isla del Coco
Comparative area:
slightly smaller than West Virginia
Land boundaries:
639 km; Nicaragua 309 km, Panama 330 km
Coastline:
1,290 km
Maritime claims:
Continental shelf:
200 nm
Exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
Territorial sea:
12 nm
Disputes:
none
Climate:
tropical; dry season (December to April); rainy season (May to November)
Terrain:
coastal plains separated by rugged mountains
Natural resources:
hydropower potential
Land use:
arable land 6%; permanent crops 7%; meadows and pastures 45%; forest and
woodland 34%; other 8%; includes irrigated 1%
Environment:
subject to occasional earthquakes, hurricanes along Atlantic coast; frequent
flooding of lowlands at onset of rainy season; active volcanoes;
deforestation; soil erosion
:Costa Rica People
Population:
3,187,085 (July 1992), growth rate 2.4% (1992)
Birth rate:
27 births/1,000 population (1992)
Death rate:
4 deaths/1,000 population (1992)
Net migration rate:
1 migrant/1,000 population (1992)
Infant mortality rate:
12 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)
Life expectancy at birth:
75 years male, 79 years female (1992)
Total fertility rate:
3.2 children born/woman (1992)
Nationality:
noun - Costa Rican(s); adjective - Costa Rican
Ethnic divisions:
white (including mestizo) 96%, black 2%, Indian 1%, Chinese 1%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 95%
Languages:
Spanish (official), English spoken around Puerto Limon
Literacy:
93% (male 93%, female 93%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
Labor force:
868,300; industry and commerce 35.1%, government and services 33%,
agriculture 27%, other 4.9% (1985 est.)
Organized labor:
15.1% of labor force
:Costa Rica Government
Long-form name:
Republic of Costa Rica
Type:
democratic republic
Capital:
San Jose
Administrative divisions:
7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Alajuela, Cartago,
Guanacaste, Heredia, Limon, Puntarenas, San Jose
Independence:
15 September 1821 (from Spain)
Constitution:
9 November 1949
Legal system:
based on Spanish civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in
the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
National holiday:
Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
Executive branch:
president, two vice presidents, Cabinet
Legislative branch:
unicameral Legislative Assembly (Asamblea Legislativa)
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (Corte Suprema)
Leaders:
Chief of State and Head of Government:
President Rafael Angel CALDERON Fournier (since 8 May 1990); First Vice
President German SERRANO Pinto (since 8 May 1990); Second Vice President
Arnoldo LOPEZ Echandi (since 8 May 1990)
Political parties and leaders:
National Liberation Party (PLN), Carlos Manuel CASTILLO Morales; Social
Christian Unity Party (PUSC), Rafael Angel CALDERON Fournier; Marxist
Popular Vanguard Party (PVP), Humberto VARGAS Carbonell; New Republic
Movement (MNR), Sergio Erick ARDON Ramirez; Progressive Party (PP), Isaac
Felipe AZOFEIFA Bolanos; People's Party of Costa Rica (PPC), Lenin CHACON
Vargas; Radical Democratic Party (PRD), Juan Jose ECHEVERRIA Brealey
Suffrage:
universal and compulsory at
