Does Costa Rica have a competitive advantage in IT?
Inherently, Costa Rica has not possessed a competitive advantage to other countries in manufacturing, design or research and development of Information Technology since its own internal demand has not required it to. However, with the expansion of "global" business and the acceptance of virtual workforces, Costa Rica does possess one key ingredient to success in Information Technology: a high quality, culturally diverse workforce, a large multilingual population, and a 95% literacy rate supported by a high degree of secondary and tertiary education. (See Human Capital and IT for more info.)
Furthermore, based on the projections made by the International Telecommunications
Union, Costa Rica has the ability and demand to increase levels of Information
Technology Infrastructure to the appropriate levels. (See
Telecommunications Infrastructure for current levels.)
| COSTA RICA | UNITED STATES | WORLD | |
| MAIN TELEPHONE LINES: Total (k) 2000 (I)
2000 (II) Per 100 inhabitants 1996 2000 (I) 2000 (II) |
759
1'019 15.47 21.25 25.46 |
195'148
- 63.99 70.88 - |
998'416
- 12.88 16.50 |
| CELLULAR MOBILE SUB-SCRIBERS:
Total (k): 2000 (II) Per 100 inhabitants: 1996 2000 (II) |
158
1.37 3.95 |
-
16.52 - |
-
2.46 |
"San Jose South"
Clearly, either Costa Rica inherently possesses a competitive advantage
in IT or the country has done a magnificent job in convincing the world
it does. Recently dubbed as "San Jose South", as in San Jose in California's
Silicon Valley, by technology companies such as Microsoft, has proven that
the government's effort in promoting its competitive advantage has paid
off. Among companies besides Microsoft who have invested hundreds
of millions of dollars in the country are Taiwan's Acer Group, Motorola,
DSC Communications, Sawtek Inc. and Lucent Technologies.18
While Lucent currently is negotiating on production facilities, Intel plans
to export $1billion in chips in its first year. That alone is about
a third more than what Costa Rica earns in tourism.
Microsoft's five year deal signed shortly after 1997 is proof that this country is a "good deal" for IT firms. Microsoft's "deal" of course, includes assisting the country in setting up a national "digital nervous system" for government ministries. In their minds this will help jump-start a software industry and wire the nation's health and school systems.
Unique Characteristics
Two studies undertaken by the World Banking-Foreign Investment Advisory
Services (FIAS) have pointed Costa Rica's unique characteristics which
single it out for the development of new high-tech companies in the fields
of:
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Last updated December 18, 1998