Costa Rica Real Estate

Hola to Hello, Costa Rica to become a bilingual State

President Arias looks for Costa Rica to become a bilingual state

Throughout the world the English language is widely spoken and it commonly known as the international language of business. However in Costa Rica only 10% of the population claim to have a competent grasp of the language, something which President and Noble Peace Prize Winner Oscar Arias is keen to change.

The ‘Costa Rica Multilingue’ plan has been developed in order to help Costa Ricans develop their understanding of the English so that by 2017 75% of high school students will be able to communicate ably in English. The objective of this is to improve employment opportunities, something which is seen to be high on the political agenda for the Central American Country. In addition to this the move is expected to attract more foreign direct investment to the region amid the spread of globalization.

Costa Rica’s stable economy has already attracted a large amount of international firms to enter the country from McDonalds to HSBC yet this move will no doubt encourage more multinational companies to look to Costa Rica as a source of business.

In order to complete these plans over 1100 teachers have begun training this week in order to become skilled in the language so that they can start teaching from the next academic year. Whilst English is already widely taught throughout Costa Rica, President Arias is concerned that the quality is substandard resulting in students being unable to advance to a higher level of competence. For this reason the government is plowing investment into the educational system as well as private businesses offering scholarship schemes to encourage people to speak the language.

Ultimately the plan looks to transform Costa Rica into a bilingual state in what is seen as the next step in the country’s plans towards economic development something which both the government and private businesses see as vitally important for the future.

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Posted by Charlie under: Economy & Politics; General News

Costa Rica Real Estate