Costa Rica News – Costa Rica is aiming to boost foreign trade with digitalization procedures related to imports and exports, the country’s ICT association Camtic said in a release.
Foreign trade promotion agency Procomer has launched a new portal which provides an inter-operable platform between the 16 state institutions involved in exterior trade, provides approval within minutes, and guarantees companies a 100% digital experience available around the clock, the release said.
The move will lead to cost reductions of up to 90% in import and export procedures, as well as saving time for companies, Camtic added.
Costa Rica’s economy is highly dependent on imports and exports, and the country has worked to incentivize large amounts of foreign direct investment in recent years.
The country recorded nominal GDP of 6.06tn colones (US$11.9bn) in Q3 of last year, with exports of goods and services reaching 2.16tn colones in the quarter, and imports of goods and services reaching 2.38tn colones, according to central bank BCCR’s figures.
Costa Rica reported an increase in total exports of 1.2% to US$11.6bn in 2013. The country has seen exports grow significantly in recent years, as it has diversified away from traditional products such as coffee, bananas, meat and sugar, and increasingly expanded exports in sectors such as seafood, manufacturing and high tech.
