Spanish cooperation in Costa Rica turns 40 years old

The Diplomat The Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) and the Costa Rican authorities have commemorated the fortieth anniversary of the establishment of Spanish Cooperation in Costa Rica, which began in 1984. According to the Agency, Spanish Cooperation in Costa Rica has focused, above all, on strengthening human capital, improving public management and supporting vulnerable groups. Over the course of these four decades, this collaboration has been reflected in “more than 1,200 cooperation interventions and almost 500 million euros invested in projects that have transformed people's lives in areas such as infrastructure, the environment and rural development,” AECID continued in a press release. Costa Rica is a middle-high income country that the Fifth Master Plan for Spanish Cooperation includes among the Advanced Cooperation countries. Spanish Cooperation in Costa Rica is governed by the Advanced Cooperation Agreement 2021-2029, the first of its kind concluded by Spain with a third country. The Agreement prioritizes the following areas of cooperation: green transition, digitalization and innovation, migration and the fight against trafficking, gender equality and culture and development. In addition, it promotes various forms of cooperation, such as bilateral, regional and multilateral, as well as triangular and delegated cooperation; together with instruments such as programs and projects, the Development Promotion Fund (FONPRODE), public-private partnerships (APPD) and Humanitarian Action. Furthermore, the Spanish Cooperation Office in San José has become the coordinator of all Spanish green cooperation on the American continent. In addition, the Cultural Center of Spain in San José has established itself as a reference space in the cultural network of the Costa Rican capital, with an emphasis on artistic creation and cultural diversity —highlighting its work with indigenous and Afro-descendant communities—, and reflection on urban renaturalization, among many other topics. To commemorate this date, the Minister of Culture and Youth of the Republic of Costa Rica, Jorge Rodríguez Vives, accompanied by the director of the AECID, Antón Leis, as well as other Costa Rican and Spanish authorities, inaugurated this Tuesday the photographic exhibition “40 Years of Spanish Cooperation in Costa Rica”, at the National Stadium. The exhibition, through works by 17 Costa Rican artists, pays tribute to this history of cooperation, highlighting the achievements and future opportunities in relation to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and the joint Humanitarian Action of both governments. Another event of this 40th anniversary was the presentation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also on Tuesday, of the book "A common commitment: 40 years of Spanish Cooperation in Costa Rica," which summarizes the achievements and challenges faced in this period, as well as the impacts of cooperation at critical moments in Costa Rican history and its impact on the improvement of human development indices in the Central American country. This presentation was co-chaired by the Minister of the Presidency, Laura Fernández, and Antón Leis. Leis visited Costa Rica as part of a tour of Central America that began in El Salvador, a priority country for Spanish Cooperation for almost 40 years and where, among other activities, he held a meeting with representatives of the Central American Integration System (SICA) at the headquarters of this international organization. After his visit to Costa Rica, the director of AECID traveled to Panama to begin work on a new alliance between the countries and to visit the START team in the Panamanian province of Darién, a jungle region that connects Panama with Colombia and through which more than 250,000 Venezuelan, Ecuadorian, Haitian and Colombian refugees and migrants have passed so far this year. “We have begun work on a new cooperation agreement with Panama based on the transitional development approach of the new Cooperation Law,” Leis said on social media X. “A strategic and innovative alliance to address challenges such as climate change, human mobility, and social inclusion,” he added.

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