Becomes 38th member and 4th Latin American country to join Paris-based organisation

Costa Rica is the latest addition to the powerful Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) grouping, making it one of the most attractive markets for foreign investment in the Latin American region.

Costa Rica’s OECD membership makes it the 38th member and the fourth Latin American country to join the Paris-based organisation, which accounts for 80 per cent of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP) and 60 per cent of international trade. The other OECD members in the region are Colombia, Chile, and Mexico.

OECD member countries span the globe from North and South America to Europe and Asia-Pacific. The organization brings together Member countries and a range of partners that collaborate on key global issues at national, regional and local levels.

Through standards, programmes and initiatives, the OECD drive and anchor reform in more than 100 countries around the world, building on collective wisdom and shared values.

Costa Rica speaks out its OECD membership

Costa Rica’s OECD membership is seen as critical at this point in its history, where the country is said to be “at a turning point” in promoting development.  The country’s key goal will be to educate more human talent in line with the needs of the knowledge economy.

In trumpeting its membership, Costa Rica, which is an upper-middle-income nation, one rank below high-income nations, is advising companies contemplating investing in Costa Rica that they will have “legal certainty” on their side.

Jorge Sequeira, managing director of Costa Rica’s investment promotion agency, CINDE acknowledged that its OECD membership will safeguard the free trade zone regime. He went on to highlight that, “the incentives granted under these standards are fully in line with the highest international best practices and requirements”.

The COVID-19 pandemic dealt a heavy blow to Costa Rica’s tourism economy, forcing it to borrow a loan from the IMF. The Central American country is currently vaccinating its people at a considerable speed, hoping to get the economy back on track.