ACOG - Costa Rica  - IBM

Geography

Location: Middle America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Nicaragua and Panama

Area:
total area: 51,100 sq km
land area: 50,660 sq km
comparative area: slightly smaller than West Virginia

Land boundaries: total 639 km, Nicaragua 309 km, Panama 330 km

Coastline: 1,290 km


People

Population: 3,419,114 (July 1995 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 35% (female 585,976; male 617,456)
15-64 years: 60% (female 1,013,491; male 1,036,195)
65 years and over: 5% (female 88,050; male 77,946)

Population growth rate: 2.24% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 24.88 births/1,000 population

Death rate: 3.47 deaths/1,000 population

Net migration rate: 1.02 migrant(s)/1,000 population

Infant mortality rate: 10.3 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 78.11 years
male: 76.21 years
female: 80.1 years

Total fertility rate: 3.01 children born/woman

Ethnic divisions: white (including mestizo) 96%, black 2%, Indian 1%, Chinese 1%

Religions: Roman Catholic 95%

Languages: Spanish (official), English; spoken around Puerto Limon

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1984)
total population: 93%
male: 93%
female: 93%


Government

Names:
conventional long form: Republic of Costa Rica
conventional short form: Costa Rica

Type: democratic republic

Capital: San Jose

Independence: 15 September 1821 (from Spain)

Constitution: 9 November 1949


Economy

National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $16.9 billion

National product real growth rate: 4.3%

National product per capita: $5,050

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 9%

Unemployment rate: 4%

Electricity:
capacity: 1,040,000 kW
production: 4.1 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 1,164 kWh



Olympic Factoid
The Mother Nature was kind to Olympic athletes and spectators. The average high temperature during the Games was 89 degrees with an average low of 72 degrees. Highest temperature registered (20 July) - 99 degrees. Lowest high temperature registered is 79 degrees (28 July).