Development Co‑operation Profiles: Costa Rica
Table of contents
Costa Rica has a dual role in development co-operation, as both a provider and a recipient. Costa Rica provides development co-operation as technical co-operation through bilateral and regional initiatives considered triangular and South-South co-operation. In 2023, Costa Rica provided technical co-operation notably to Argentina, the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Paraguay and Peru.
This profile presents verified data on development assistance allocation. See the Development Co-operation Profiles.
Costa Rica’s development co-operation focuses on providing technical assistance through South-South and triangular co-operation. The Ministry of National Planning and Economic Policy (Mideplan) is the institution in charge of implementing and registering in Mideplan’s information data system (SIGECI) Costa Rica’s international co-operation based on the objectives noted in the 2023-2026 National Plan for Development (PNDIP), which focuses on poverty, inequality and the environment. Article 10 of Decree No. 37735 establishes the PNDIP as the framework to define the objectives, policies, goals, programmes and strategies that Mideplan co-ordinates in collaboration with other institutions in the National Planning System. The international co-operation policy for 2024-2035 (POLCID-CR) is the current policy framework guiding Costa Rica’s development co-operation and implementation of the PNDIP, together with the 2030 Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Costa Rica’s new international development co-operation policy 2024-2035 (POLCID-CR) was released in January 2025, representing its second development co-operation policy. The policy is unique, spanning a 12-year period. The longer time frame aims to be more predictable and address and articulate the various dimensions of its international co-operation in a way that transcends electoral cycles. This approach is expected to provide greater consistency and sustainability in the implementation of development activities and, to the greatest possible extent, generate a better impact for recipient institutions and populations.
The purpose of the policy is also to ensure that Costa Rica’s technical and non-reimbursable resources are gradually redirected towards countries and regions the most in need and vulnerable (such as coastal and border areas), but also towards those territories with a low Human Development Index. The policy also seeks to ensure that resources reach populations at social risk and most in need of state intervention, such as groups living in poverty or extreme poverty; women heads of household; children and adolescents; the elderly; people with disabilities; indigenous populations; Afro-descendants; LGTBIQ+ groups; as well as migrants at the national, regional and local levels. This new policy will be implemented in six strategic areas: 1) environment and climate action; 2) sustainable and renewable energies; 3) social inclusion; 4) sustainable economic development; 5) digital infrastructure and innovation; and 6) justice and security.
The policy represents the official framework for Costa Rica’s development co-operation priorities and takes as a reference at the national level:
the National Strategic Plan 2050 (PEN 2050)
the National Plan for Development and Public Investment “Rogelio Fernández Güell” 2023-2026
the Social Development Index, 2023
the Decarbonization Plan 2018-2050.
At the international level, the following were taken as a reference:
the 2030 Agenda and in particular SDG 17 “Partnerships to achieve the Goals”
Costa Rica’s international commitments for financing for development: the Paris Declaration, the Accra Agenda for Action and the Busan Partnership for Effective Development Co‑operation
the III Montevideo Consensus Report on Population and Development 2023
the OECD Development Co-operation Report 2023: Debating the Aid System.
The cross-cutting approaches and principles on which the policy is based are: the Management for Development Results Approach; the Population-differential Approach; the Territorial Approach; Spatial Coverage; the Multi-Stakeholder Approach; and the premise of promoting a modern, green, emission‑free economy with social inclusion.
Source: Ministry of National Planning and Economic Policy (2024), International Co-operation Policy for the Development of Costa Rica and its Action Plan 2024-35, https://documentos.mideplan.go.cr/share/s/icGqahOgTEeEAlShV4b1Pw.
Costa Rica is a member of the International Forum on TOSSD. As a provider of South-South co-operation, Costa Rica has been reporting on Total Official Support for Sustainable Development (TOSSD) since its inception in 2020 on 2019 activities.
Costa Rica reported USD 708 000 in support of sustainable development in the form of cross-border resources to TOSSD recipients in 2023.
In 2023, Costa Rica’s support to sustainable development mainly contributed to advancing SDG 17 (partnerships for the Goals), SDG 9 (industry, innovation and infrastructure) and SDG 13 (climate action).
In 2023, all cross-border resources provided by Costa Rica were allocated by country or region. In total, Costa Rica’s cross-border flows benefited six countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (most notably Bolivia and Chile) and one country in Asia (Nepal).
In 2023, nearly half of Costa Rica’s cross-border flows (49%) were allocated to disaster risk reduction in TOSSD recipients, amounting to USD 339 000. A total of USD 351 000 (48%) targeted social infrastructure and services, most of which was allocated to supporting government and civil society (USD 331 000).
With its dual role in development co-operation, Costa Rica engages in triangular co-operation. In 2023, its reporting to TOSSD shows its regional priority is Latin America and the Caribbean. Its main beneficiaries are the Caribbean and Central America region and Bolivia. The main thematic priority is disaster risk reduction.
Learn more about triangular co-operation.
The Directorate General for International Co-operation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the International Co-operation Area of Mideplan manage Costa Rica’s incoming and outgoing development co-operation. Mideplan is responsible for formulating, negotiating, co-ordinating, approving and evaluating technical assistance programmes in line with the National Development Plan. It forwards requests for technical assistance to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which assesses whether such requests are consistent with Costa Rica’s foreign policy and presents them to the relevant governments and international bodies.1 The Ministry of Foreign Affairs represents Costa Rica in international co‑operation, having exclusive competence in diplomatic negotiations and formalising development co-operation agreements. Mideplan is responsible for internal leadership in matters of international co-operation, having exclusive competence for the management and technical negotiation of international co-operation with national entities, agencies and institutions, to ensure it is consistent with the National Development Plan. Ministries and public sector institutions use an international co-operation liaison system (the National Co‑operation Subsystem) to contact Mideplan when implementing an international co-operation project.2
Access the full list of providers at this link: Development Co-operation Profiles.
Ministry of National Planning and Economic Policy (2024), International Co-operation Policy for the Development of Costa Rica and its Action Plan 2024-35, https://documentos.mideplan.go.cr/share/s/icGqahOgTEeEAlShV4b1Pw
Government of Costa Rica (2018), International Co-operation Projects Management System, Ministry of Planning and Economic Policy, San José.
Costa Rica has been a member of the OECD since 2021. Costa Rica is not a member of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC).
Costa Rica participates regularly in the DAC Senior-Level and High Level Meetings, participating in the 2025 DAC High Level Meeting. Costa Rica participated in the first Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) Regional Programme Dialogue on Development Co-operation in 2024.
Costa Rica has been part of the TOSSD International Task Force since its inception in 2017 and is now a member of the International Forum on TOSSD. It conducted a TOSSD pilot study in 2018.3 It has been reporting to TOSSD since 2020, on 2019 data.
The methodological notes provide further details on the definitions and statistical methodologies applied.
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