Cost Rica is a country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the south, the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Caribbean Sea to the east.
This country is considered one of the most advanced in Latin America. In the 1950s, the army was abolished in favor of the promotion of education and health programs, Costa Rica gains more than 90% of its energy needs from renewable sources and ecotourism is strongly encouraged. About 27% of its land area is under protection.
Unlike many other countries in the region, in Costa Rica there is a stable democracy since the 1950s. It was saved, thanks to early social policy, from issues such as social unrest, civil wars and dictatorships, which spread all over Latin America during the 20th century. Given the then armed conflicts in neighboring countries, Costa Rica declared in 1983 its "permanent and active unarmed neutrality" and is now referred to as "the Switzerland of Central America".
Source Wikipedia: http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costa_Rica
