Costa Rica: Central America’s democratic eco paradise

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica – A favourite tourist destination for its stunning beaches and rich natural beauty, Costa Rica has recently seen its tranquillity shattered by the impact of drug trafficking.

Here are five things to know about the small Central American country of 5.2 million inhabitants, which went to the polls on Feb 1 to elect a new president and lawmakers.

No military

Despite its location at the heart of a violent and conflict-ridden region, Costa Rica has long clung on to a stable democracy since its only civil war, which lasted 44 days in 1948.

That year, it abolished its military – a rarity in Latin America.

In the 1980s, when several other Central American countries were mired in civil wars, neutral Costa Rica acted as peace broker, earning then President Oscar Arias Sanchez the Nobel Peace Prize in 1987.

In recent years, the country has seen an increase in organised crime. Drug trafficking has infiltrated even into spheres of the state, tarnishing Costa Rica’s image with high-profile corruption cases.

Long considered one of the safest countries in Latin America, Costa Rica ended 2025 with a rate of 17 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants – nearly triple the global average.

The country has a tradition of welcoming asylum seekers and hosts hundreds of thousands of Nicaraguans who have fled repression across the border.

Green paradise

With its striking Pacific and Caribbean beaches, lush rainforests and imposing volcanoes, Costa Rica is considered a global leader for its environmental policies.

Nature reserves cover a quarter of Costa Rica’s 51,000 sq km – territory that hosts 6 per cent of the world’s biodiversity, according to official figures.

Nearly all of its electricity generation comes from renewable sources, primarily water, geothermal and wind.

Happy people

Costa Rica ranks in sixth place on the World Happiness Report, and its people are rated the happiest in Latin America.

The local expression “pura vida” (pure life) has become a national motto – an expression of optimism that is also used to greet people or give thanks.

The country’s northern Nicoya Peninsula hosts one of the world’s so-called Blue Zones – places where people live exceptionally long, healthy lives.

Rich but unequal

Ecotourism is a key economic engine, with some 2.9 million people visiting Costa Rica in 2025, mainly from the United States, according to the tourism institute.

It is a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development group of high-income countries, with gross domestic product growth of 3.6 per cent forecast for 2026.

While poverty fell from 18 per cent of the population in 2024 to 15.2 per cent in 2025, Costa Rica is among the six most unequal Latin American countries on the Gini Index, and is the second most expensive after Uruguay.

Human rights backsliding

Roman Catholicism is Costa Rica’s state religion, but the country has shown itself to be progressive on social and civil rights.

In 2020, it became the first country in Central America to legalise same-sex marriage.

Activists point to backsliding over the past four years of conservative government, during which Costa Rica restricted abortion to cases in which a woman’s life is at risk. Previously, it could also be performed if a pregnancy put a woman’s health in peril.

The government has also eliminated sex education programmes in schools.

In 2025, Costa Rica agreed to receive 200 migrants deported by the US under conditions decried by human rights groups. AFP