This performance is now increasingly broadening to additional spatial boundaries and with them come new business investment opportunities for you to seize.
The North Zone is home to one of the most iconic tourist destinations in Costa Rica where wellness-boosting thermal waters spur in the slopes of Arenal Volcano. Amidst this breathtaking scene, agricultural activity and food production blend with IT and software development every day. Nature’s richness and biodiversity combine with the influence of 8 universities that contribute to the development of a robust information technology and biotechnology research.
The presence of the North Zone Development Agency serves as a key agent to drive collaboration between the local government, technical and university institutions and the private sector; to support new development and investment projects in the region.
The North Pacific of Costa Rica has been a tourism powerhouse for decades. The Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport, located in Liberia and considered Costa Rica’s second most important airport, connects with Europe, North and Latin America. Guanacaste’s dry tropical forest, wide plains and volcanic hot springs are an ideal setting for renewable energy with wind, solar, geothermal and hiydro sources that produce 28.9% of the national energy production. It has become a testing lab for both clinical trials and aerospace technology with rocket plasma propulsion R&D, as well as the only one of 3 hydrogen plants in Latin America on this site. Most recently, the region has become a hot destination for digital nomads, with several co-working spaces along our pristine beaches.
The Central Pacific of Costa Rica serves as a strategic connection point between the Americas, linking to the West coast of the United States, Asia and key markets in Latin America. The Pacific port of Caldera is a robust hub for imports, exports and logistics, where corporations leverage Costa Rica’s free trade agreements with China, South Korea and Singapore as well as the USA. The port is also a must destination for cruise ships with over 120 port calls per season, as well as high-end recreational boating the luxury marinas nearby. The region is a preferred touristic destination due to its proximity to beaches and diversity of landscapes in the Gulf Islands, as well as the presence of National Parks with the lush biodiversity of the tropics such as Monteverde, Carara and Manuel Antonio. Its also boasts strong expertise in manufacturing ranging from precision machining and construction goods to food processing.
The Caribbean coast of Costa Rica has been the country's main marine trade gateway since the early 1900s. The city of Limon is the main cruise ship call in the country and the most vivid example of the multicultural encounter throughout history as it was the first spot where Christopher Columbus touched the country naming it "rich coast" or Costa Rica for a very good reason.
The region is a prime location for industries looking to source the best of the best for their gourmet, premium food products, given recent innovation in organic cocoa plantations, diverse tropical crops and a global trend for sustainable agriculture and carbon neutral cultivation. As the port of connection with the Eastern seaboards of the Americas and Europe, the port has received a $1 billion investment in state-of-the-art infrastructure where 80% of the countries exports and imports take place.
The Development Agency of the Caribbean looks to boost the region's economy supporting productive activities with high potential for generating growth opportunities: agroindustrial, tourism and logistics. The Turrialba Development Agency also aims to support the establishment of new companies by facilitating their installation and post-establishment processes in the region
The southern region of Costa Rica can be reached through the Inter-American highway (route 2) which connects it with the Great Metropolitan Area, as well as route 34 linking the region through the Pacific coast. Both routes allow access all the way to the Panama boarder. Perez Zeledon is the main gateway and distribution center with a population of over 144 thousand people. Though its natural economy is heavily related to agribusiness and food processing, Perez Zeledon also nurtures a growing cluster of IT and software development companies that provide outsourcing and support for captive services operations. The Southern Pacific zone, which includes Golfito, Osa, Coto Brus, Corredores and Buenos Aires is a natural laboratory for research and development due to its climate conditions.
Development Agency of Pérez Zeledón and Development Agency of the South Region are both eager to articulate and collaborate with investors, the local government, academia and civil society to support new development and investment projects in the zone.
The Western area of Costa Rica's Central Valley, just 20 minutes away from Costa Rica’s main International Airport and an hour away from Central Pacific Coast is strategically located to become a dynamic logistics hub. Add a comfortable 23ºC (73ºF) average temperature and one can understand by its coffee-filled slopes with coffee tours, and volcanic views have become a must-see tourist attraction. The towns of Atenas, Poas, Grecia, Naranjo, Sarchí, Palmares, San Ramón and Zarcero make this region and articulate efforts through the Occidental Municipalities Federation (FEDOMA) to improve the region's competitiveness, several active free trade zones in the area and wide landscape serve as sounding ground for advanced manufacturing processes and host local and foreign direct investments.
