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Third
most competitive nation
Costa
Rica is the third most competitive
country in Latin America, according to
a survey by the World Economic Forum,
even though there are shortcomings in
areas such as corruption and access to
technology. These data surfaced in the
Global Competitiveness Report
2002-2003 of the Forum, a
multi-national organization with
headquarters in Davos, Switzerland.
Based on interviews with 4,700
businessmen around the world, the
report includes two indexes, the first
of which assesses the economic growth
outlook, in which Costa Rica places 43rd
among 80 countries. This means an
8-slot drop, as compared to the
position occupied in the preceding
period. The other index assesses the
conditions that favor productivity in
businesses in every country. Here
Costa Rica places 39, nine places
above its position in the 2001-2002
report. In both classifications, Costa
Rica is the third in Latin America,
preceded by Chile and Uruguay in the
first ranking and by Chile and Brazil
in the second one. Arturo Condo,
director of the Latin American Center
for Competitiveness and Sustainable
Development, pointed out that Costa
Rica must concentrate on improving
telephone services, halting
corruption, and controlling inflation
in order to improve in the rankings.
Bearer
of hope
Climbing
mountains, trekking the jungle,
struggling against mud and many other
obstacles in order to reach his
patients is part of everyday life for
Dr. Guillermo Cubillo, 25. Currently
doing his social service in the
Cabecar Indian Reservation in the
Chirripo Mountains, his commitment to
the community is not set back by
exhaustion or the hazards of the
trail. The Costa Rican Social Security
Institution (CCSS in Spanish) honored
Dr. Cubillo with the Humanitarian Care
Award 2002, destined to those who set
example and are committed in the
service to the community. During the
presentation, several examples of the
physicianís deeds above and beyond
the call of duty were mentioned. For
example, at one time he trekked the
jungle for 7 hours in order to reach a
patient with a broken leg; however,
upon reaching that man, he learned of
two other people who needed help, and
walked a further 3 hours to help them
too. Dr. Cubillo pointed out that in
spite of the difficulties of life in
the region, the Cabecar community is
"a land of hope."
Textiles,
light recovery
Costa
Rican textile exports grew 2.6 percent
from September 2001 to August 2002, as
compared to the preceding period. This
implies larger production in spite of
the crisis that the sector is going
through and the reduction in imports
by the United States, the leading
customer. Tatiana Remy and Miguel
Schyfter, director and chairman of the
Textile Quota Council respectively,
explained that the increase, however
light, has a lot of meaning, in
particular when compared to the drops
experienced by competitors of Costa
Rica in this area. With 40,000 jobs,
the textile sector is one of the key
areas of employment in Costa Rica.
Surplus
against coffee prices
The
recovery of the prices of coffee in
the international market cannot be
rated yet as sustainable, because
there is a surplus of some 15 million
100-pound bags in the market,
International Coffee Organization
executive director Nestor Osorio
admitted. He pointed out that the
outlook is gloom, because of Brazil
had a record crop, Colombia increased
its production, and the coffee from
Vietnam and other countries is
flooding the market. Costa Rica,
highly dependent on the coffee market,
has experienced bankruptcy, growing
debts, and failure to meet basic needs
among its thousands of small growers
ñone of the backbones of Tico
agricultureñ as a result of the low
international prices of coffee.
Exports
pick up
According
to data from the Central Bank of Costa
Rica, exports are experiencing a small
improvement, estimated at $224 million
more this year than in 2001, when they
reached $5.021 billion. This means a 4
percent increase, whose importance
grows when it is taken into
consideration that the sales abroad of
bananas and Intel microchips will be
$65 millions less in 2002.
Cautious
outlook
A
survey by the Union of Business
Chambers of Costa Rica (UCCAEP in
Spanish) assessed the opinions of 300
companies regarding a reactivation of
economy by next year. Most of the
respondents were cautious and rated
the possibility of improvement as low
or very low. UCCAEP chairman Samuel
Yankelewitz commented that this
perception is unavoidably influenced
by the uncertainty that world economy
is experiencing. However, he stated
hopes about the taking of domestic
measures that would eventually lead to
a reactivation of Tico economy.
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