Almost overnight, companies faced scrutiny over their environmental, social and governance (ESG) track record. Covid-19, it is hoped, will mark a turning point for progressive, ESG-led investment in supporting a sustainable recovery.
develop the right conditions for multinational companies that are looking to invest with purpose
Taking the lead towards sustainable investment
During these years, Costa Rica has become a world leader in environmental policies, playing a key role in helping to attract eco-conscious foreign investors.
In 2018, the country joined the Wellbeing Economy Alliance, which brings together organisations from around the globe, to transform the economy into one that puts human and ecological well-being first.
“Costa Rica’s commitment to sustainability is our flagship to develop the right conditions for multinational companies that are looking to invest with purpose,” explains Jorge Sequeira, managing director of Costa Rica’s Investment Promotion Agency (CINDE). “Under the ‘People, Planet, Prosperity’ pillars, [we are] boosting the opportunities for all those responsible enterprises that need a strategic partner to accomplish new business standards.”
P&G’s San José service centre has been able to achieve several of these goals – such as carbon neutrality and zero waste to landfill – significantly ahead of schedule. It is also very close to reaching the goal of using 100% renewable energy.
“Environmental sustainability is embedded in how we do business,” says communications and government relations director at P&G Costa Rica Fernando Calderón. “Thanks to Costa Rica’s leadership and innovation in environmental matters, P&G’s operation in Costa Rica has successfully implemented initiatives in line with our Ambition 2030 goals.”
A greener future
In February 2020, Costa Rica made its environmental proclamation to date, unveiling ambitious plans to reach carbon neutrality by 2050. The comprehensive commitment pledges to reform transport, energy, waste and land use, while continuing to expand its forests. 
“The decarbonisation plan consists of maintaining an upward curve in terms of economic growth and at the same time generating a downward curve in the use of fossil fuels,” Costa Rica’s President Carlos Alvarado Quesada explained at the time.
Despite only producing 0.02% of the world’s emissions, this move is indicative of Costa Rica’s dedication to bringing about real change, setting an example for the bigger carbon offenders.
Costa Rica’s minister for environment and energy, Andrea Meza Murillo, explains that such targets are for the benefit of everybody in the country and a huge boom for future investment opportunities. “We’re proud to be a highly ambitious country in climate and biodiversity,” she says. “We believe that this is the way to modernise and dynamise our economy.” The idea that the move towards decarbonisation makes economic sense and that sustainability and growth can work together, side by side. Costa Rica looks ready to help lead the process.
Costa Rica a Blue Zone for business
Beyond the environmental policies, Costa Rica is celebrated for its ‘pura vida’ life views. According to the Happy Planet Index, it is the happiest and most sustainable country globally.
It is also home to Nicoya, one of five ‘Blue Zones’ around the world that host an unusually high number of healthy centenarians. Most inhabitants live beyond the average life expectancy worldwide until at least the age of 90.
In 2017, cosmetic giant Chanel looked to Costa Rica’s Nicoya Peninsula when selecting the ingredients for its anti-aging serum. Coffee producers use a special extraction method to achieve the purest concentrations of green coffee which contains 70 times more antioxidant active molecules than are found in regular coffee beans around the world.
www.cinde.org
