Archive for February 27th, 2009
Friday, February 27th, 2009
Although the price of crude oil on international markets has dropped and the state refinery, Recope, is being investigated for exaggerated profits, the price of a litre of gasoline at the country’s pumps continues to go up.
On March 14, the price of a litre of super gasoline will increase by ¢54 colones and regular ¢48. Diesel, on the other hand, will drop ¢18 colones.
The increase is not yet official, it still requires the signature of the Regulador General and published in the official government newsletter, La Gaceta.
This will be third consecutive increase of gasoline prices this year.
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Friday, February 27th, 2009
Banco de Costa Rica (BCR) reported on Thursday the release of more than ¢100 billion (nearly $18 million) in housing credit loans this week, money that could ultimately help as many as 6,000 families who wish to build or buy a home.
Home-buyers can apply for the loans at any BCR branch nationwide, and applications will take an average of 15 days to be processed, said a BCR statement released this week.
The measure is part of the Mano Solidaria (helping hand) program created after President Oscar Arias in January requested a yearlong 2 percent decrease in interest rates for loans for buying houses and for small, medium and big companies, as well as personal credit.
For a ¢20 million (about $35,736) loan, a person would have to make payments of ¢250,000 ($447) a month. Prior to this program, loan recipients had to make payments of a little more than ¢300,000 ($536).
Basic requirements for an application include photocopies of both sides of the national identification card, proof of address (a utility bill receipt) and a statement verifying the applicant’s monthly income.
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Friday, February 27th, 2009
Greenhouse tomatoes from Costa Rica should arrive in the U.S. by mid-May.
“Costa Rica is lining up to fill a gap between the winter and spring tomato greenhouse deal,” said Paul Mastronardi, executive vice president for Kingsville, Ontario-based Mastronardi Produce Ltd., which is marketing the imported tomatoes.
Mauricio Blanco, president of the greenhouse group exporting the tomatoes, the Association of Crop Producers under Controlled Medium, Alfaro Ruiz, Alajuela, Costa Rica, said 15 growers plan to ship tomatoes this season, and by next year, 22 more growers are scheduled to join the ranks. (more…)
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Friday, February 27th, 2009
The Costa Rican government has seized a commercial fishing boat caught with its fishing lines inside the waters of the Isla del Coco National Marine Park, one of the country’s most prized protected areas.
Park guards boarded the boat and released three live sharks and a mahi-mahi back into the sea, according to a statement from MarViva, a non-governmental sea conservation organization.
The boat, called the Zaragoza II, was caught by the MarViva I, a patrol boat belonging to the conservation NGO. The organization conducts regular patrols with park guards from the Environment, Energy and Telecommunications Ministry (MINAET) aboard.
The Zaragoza II was caught 8.5 nautical miles from the island of Isla del Coco, which lies 365 miles off Costa Rica’s Pacific coast. The Isla del Coco National Park encompasses the island and the biologically rich waters surrounding it within 12 nautical miles of the shore.
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Friday, February 27th, 2009
The Costa Rican government on Tuesday signed an agreement with the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) to implement a joint program to prevent HIV-AIDS, Xinhua reported.
The program will focus on youngsters living in Puntarenas and Limon, two main coastal cities of Costa Rica. Costa Rican President Oscar Arias attended the signing ceremony. A study on youngsters in the two cities regarding HIV-AIDS was released during the event.
The study, which was based on a sample of 800 teenagers between 13 and 18 years old from both cities, showed that there is a formidable lack of knowledge about methods to prevent HIV-AIDS among the young in the region. (more…)
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Friday, February 27th, 2009
Women drivers all around always get a bad rap. We have all heard about the danger of a woman behind a wheel or of how, at the scene of an accident, a woman must have been involved. No different in Costa Rica. However, the numbers tell a different story.
According to the figures released by the Consejo de Seguridad Vial de Costa Rica of the 597 traffic accidents registered last year, on 23 women were involved in the accident. The other 551 or 92% involved men.
Of course, in Costa Rica the probability of men being involved in traffic accidents is greater as there are four times more men drivers than women.
Cosevi records indicate that in 2008 there were 146.580 male drivers registered, compared to only 39.732 women.
If we do simple math, if 25% of the women are drivers then they should be responsible for nearly 150 accidents. And, if we take the number of accidents involving women, multiplying it by four, women would be involved for only 15% of the accidents, much less than the quarter that would be attributed to them.
Neither of the two sexes are free of committing an error behind the wheel.
Specialists say that men are involved in more accidents as the male hormones take over and lead them to take more risks on the road.
In Costa Rica, “machismo” is an important part of driving and anyone who doesn’t agree with that, take a look at driver behind the vehicles that are taking more risks, cutting off other drivers and the vehicle themselves.
In the end, the numbers speak for themselves, women are better drivers.
So, the next time your curse out that woman driver who just cut you off, remember there are 24 men doing exactly the same.
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