Bridging Costa Rica's green growth gap

This report analyzes Costa Rica's green growth, noting that while historical investments in education and natural capital fueled an industrial transition and a successful eco-tourism sector, the country now faces a skills gap in innovation and critical deficiencies in sustainable public infrastructure, specifically regarding wastewater and greenhouse gas emissions.

• Costa Rica's economic model shifted from a rural to an industrial economy following liberalisation policies implemented in response to the Latin American debt crisis of the 1980s. This transition was supported by heavy government investment in health care and education between the 1950s and late 1970s, which provided the necessary skills for the manufacturing and services sectors.
• While the country possesses a skilled workforce, it faces a skills gap characterized by a shortage of workers with technical, creative, and 'soft' skills required for an innovation-based economy. Conversely, low-qualified workers remain trapped in declining sectors like manufacturing and agriculture due to a lack of education needed for more dynamic sectors.
• Costa Rica has achieved significant macroeconomic growth through biodiversity and eco-tourism. However, it faces critical environmental gaps in wastewater management and increasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which the report attributes to insufficient spending on sustainable public infrastructure.

APA

Climate and Development Knowledge Network (2017). Bridging Costa Rica's green growth gap. https://cdkn.org/resource/report-bridging-costa-ricas-green-growth-gap

Chicago

Climate and Development Knowledge Network. Bridging Costa Rica's green growth gap. 2017. https://cdkn.org/resource/report-bridging-costa-ricas-green-growth-gap.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |title=Bridging Costa Rica's green growth gap |date=19 June 2017 |url=https://cdkn.org/resource/report-bridging-costa-ricas-green-growth-gap |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climateanddevelopmentknowledgenetwork2017bridging, author = {{Climate and Development Knowledge Network}}, title = {{Bridging Costa Rica's green growth gap}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2017}, month = jun, url = {https://cdkn.org/resource/report-bridging-costa-ricas-green-growth-gap}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }