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Central America between Nicaragua and Panama.
Figures unless otherwise stated are from the CIA Factbook.
Factbook: "Costa Rica's basically stable economy depends on tourism, agriculture, and electronics exports. Exports have become more diversified in the past 10 years due to the growth of the high-tech manufacturing sector, which is dominated by the microprocessor industry and the production of medical devices."
Estimated per capita GDP:
2008 $11,600 (ranks 6th among Latin American countries)
2007 $11,400
2006 $10,800
GDP growth rate:
2008: 3%
2007: 6.8%
2006: 8.8%
Unemployment rate estimated for 2008: 5.6%
Exports: coffee, bananas, sugar; pineapples; textiles, electronic components, medical equipment
Military expenditures as a percentage of GDP: 0.4 (2006)
Deaths: 4.31. Births: 17.71, down from 18.6 in 2005.
Estimated for July 2008: 4.196 mllion. Growth rate: 1.388 percent per year.
More people coming than going -- a good sign. A net gain of 0.48 persons for every 1,000 population.
For 2008: Infant deaths before the age of one per 1,000 live births: 9.01, down from 9.95 in 2005
Average life expectancy at birth estimated for 2008: 77.4, up from 76.84 years in 2005.
Living with HIV/AIDS, ages 15 to 49: 0.6 percent (2003).
SOURCES:
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/
Copyright © 2008 by Frank E. Smitha. All rights reserved.