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28 Apr 2006 |
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Daily Edition: San José, Costa Rica, April 28, 2006
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Arias Announces Cabinet
President-elect Oscar Arias announced his Cabinet yesterday, remarking that the selections are based on a meritocracy of not only intellect and experience, but also “moral character.”
(Click for more)
German Producers in Costa Rica
To Check out Organic Produce
With visions of selling Germans more of Costa Rica's organically grown mangoes, pineapples, coffee and other products, a delegation of German importers met with Costa Rican organic producers at a seminar in San José yesterday to establish contacts for potentially exporting more Costa Rican organic products to Germany and other European countries.
(Click for more)
Two Wanted Costa Ricans
Arrested in the United States
U.S. Immigration authorities Wednesday arrested in the U.S. state of New Jersey two Costa Ricans convicted in Costa Rica of fraud, according to a statement released yesterday by International Police (INTERPOL).
(Click for more)
Tourism Fair Hopes to
Generate $120 Million
Expotur 2006, a tourism industry fair to be held in Costa Rica May 16-19, could potentially generate $120 million; 137 international representatives and more than 200 local businesses plan to attend, according to the event's organizers.
(Click for more)
April 28
Today
Urban Art Festival
With painting, sculpture, drawing and more, today through Sunday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., north side of La Soledad Church, San José. Info: 295-6275, 255-2360.
Saturday
Mountain Bike Competition "Vuelta del Silencio"
For couples, 70 kilometers in the Northern Zone, starts at 8:30 a.m. from Nuevo Arenal. Registration: www.deportesextremos.com
20th Annual International Fair
Tropical Agronomy Research Center (CATIE), Turrialba, Caribbean slope town, music, crafts and traditional food from 10 Latin American countries, today and tomorrow. Info: 558-2000.
Sunday
National Symphony Orchestra Concert
Performing works by Beethoven, Shostakovich, Debussy and Ravel, with guest director Michael Lankester and guest cellist, Bernhard Naoki Hedenborg, 8 p.m., National Theater, San José.
Edited By Amanda Roberson
Tico Times Staff
aroberson@ticotimes.net
Arias Announces Cabinet
By Rebecca Kimitch
Tico Times Staff
rkimitch@ticotimes.net
President-elect Oscar Arias announced his Cabinet yesterday, remarking that the selections are based on a meritocracy of not only intellect and experience, but also “moral character.”
Arias also boasted to The Tico Times that the group has the greatest number of Ph.D.s (seven) of any Cabinet in the country's history.
“The job (of selecting) has been hard, thank God, because in Costa Rica we have, in all fields, people capable of performing brilliantly in public posts,” Arias said. “It has been a pleasure to prove that it is possible, in Costa Rica today, to form a ministerial team of such capacity and humane quality as I am honored to formally present today.”
Arias began by presenting his younger brother, Rodrigo Arias, as Minister of the Presidency. He then named Marco Vargas as a “minister without an assigned post” and explained that Vargas will help the Ministry of the Presidency coordinate all of the ministries because his brother will be very busy working with the Legislative Assembly.
Arias also named former minister Fernando Zumbado as Minister of Housing and the Fight against Poverty, doctor and scientist María Luisa Avila as Health Minister, Guillermo Zúñiga as Finance Minister, Alfredo Volio as Production Minister (aka Agriculture Minister), businessman Marco Vinicio Ruiz as Foreign Trade Minister, former minister Francisco Morales as Labor Minister, Vice-President Laura Chinchilla as Justice Minister, Vice-President Kevin Casas as Minister of Planning and Economic Policy, U.N. Ambassador Bruno Stagno as Foreign Relations Minister, economist and writer Leonardo Garnier as Education Minister, former vice-minister Karla González as Public Works and Transport Minister, legislator Carlos Benavides as Tourism Minister, Fernando Berrocal as Minister of Security, industrial engineer Roberto Dobles as Environment and Energy Minister, professor and scientist Eugenia Flores as Science and Technology Minister and María Elena Carballo as Culture Minister.
Despite pledges for equilibrium in his government, only five of the 17 ministers are women, to which Arias responded that more female representation would result in the forthcoming naming of vice ministers.
German Producers in Costa Rica
To Check out Organic Produce
By Amanda Roberson
Tico Times Staff
aroberson@ticotimes.net
With visions of selling Germans more of Costa Rica's organically grown mangoes, pineapples, coffee and other products, a delegation of German importers met with Costa Rican organic producers at a seminar in San José yesterday to establish contacts for potentially exporting more Costa Rican organic products to Germany and other European countries.
A few representatives from BTA, an umbrella organization of German importers, were in Costa Rica on a visit organized by GTZ, a German technical cooperation that works in rural sustainable development in Costa Rica.
“We're looking to make business-to-business contacts to import more Costa Rican organic products to Germany,” said GTZ coordinator Ulrich Rottger, explaining that yesterday's seminar was the first step in evaluating the possibility of expanding the market of organic bananas, mangoes, coffee and other products Costa Rica exports to Germany.
At yesterday's seminar, GTZ also presented the idea of providing technical training to organic farmers, Rottger said, and hopes to follow up with more concrete plans.
Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) advisor Felicia Echeverría shared Rottger's enthusiasm for Costa Rican organic products. However, in order to increase its exports, Costa Rica must significantly up its production, she said. Passing a proposed law that promotes organic agriculture by providing significant tax breaks to organic farmers and opening lines of credit for them (TT, April 7) would be a crucial step in increasing the $5 million in organic products Costa Rica exports yearly, Echeverría said.
“The problem is production,” Echeverría said. “Ninety percent of organic farmers are small farmers, but with some support and training, there is the potential for even more growth and diversification.”
The German visitors had the chance to view and sample various Costa Rican organic products on display by national producers including chocolates, pineapple, melon, coffee, macadamia and oils.
Katalina Sánchez, exporting manager at Tayutic Valley, a company in the Caribbean-slope town of Turrialba that has been exporting sugar, coffee and macadamia to the United States, Canada, Germany and other European communities for 10 years, said she and other organic producers are eager to have the opportunity to export more of their products.
“Here in Costa Rica, there are only 4 million potential consumers; we could be selling a lot more outside the country,” Sánchez said.
Two Wanted Costa Ricans
Arrested in the United States
U.S. Immigration authorities Wednesday arrested in the U.S. state of New Jersey two Costa Ricans convicted in Costa Rica of fraud, according to a statement released yesterday by International Police (INTERPOL).
Hector Luis Fallas, who was arrested in his home in Somerville, New Jersey, has been sought by Costa Rican police since March 2005, the statement said. Upon suspecting Fallas had fled the country, the Public Security Ministry collaborated with INTERPOL to search for him in the United States.
Luis Gustavo Salazar, arrested in Somerset, New Jersey, has been wanted by Costa Rican police since 2001, the statement said. Both Fallas and Salazar face deportation to Costa Rica.
-Tico Times
Tourism Fair Hopes to
Generate $120 Million
Expotur 2006, a tourism industry fair to be held in Costa Rica May 16-19, could potentially generate $120 million; 137 international representatives and more than 200 local businesses plan to attend, according to the event's organizers.
Among foreign companies that plan to participate include Geodyssey, from the United Kingdom; Rodley Tours, from Mexico; Mater Club de Viajes, from Spain; Latino Travel, from Switzerland; Chalinga Travel, from Holland; Tal Tours, from the United States and Jac Travel, from Argentina.
Expotur will also include seminars, roundtable discussions and a “green fair” to exhibit environmentally-friendly products.
Expotur, organized by the Costa Rican Association of Tourism Professionals (ACOPROT), has been held yearly since 1984. The event has the goal of creating contacts with tourism-service providers such as airlines, hotels and tour operators, by allowing them to sell discounted vacation packages.
According to ACOPROT statistics, Expotur generated more than $100 million last year and was attended by 222 representatives from 145 international companies.
Tourism is considered one of the strongest economic forces in Costa Rica; last year $1.6 million tourists visited the country and generated $1.6 billion.
-ACAN-EFE