|
Country
|
Costa Rica | 
Greece |
|
Leader
|
President: Laura Chinchilla
|
President: Karolos Papoulias
|
|
Population
|
4,636,348
| 10,767,827
|
|
Life Expectancy
|
77.890 years
| 80.050 years
|
|
Capital City
|
San Jose
| Athens
|
|
Largest city
|
| San Jose (population: 335,007) | Athens (population: 729,137) |
|
Human Development Index
|
0.847
| 0.947
|
| GDP per capita |
$12,100 US
| $26,600 US
|
|
Literacy Rate
|
94.9%
| 96%
|
|
Corruption Perception Index
|
5.1
| 4.7
|
|
Percentage of Women in Parliament
|
36.8%
| 14.7%
|
| Wealthiest Citizens |
NA
| Spiro Latsis & family ($3.8bn US)
|
| Unemployment Rate |
6.500%
| 17.300%
|
|
Death Penalty
|
Abolished
| Abolished
|
| |
|
Political System
|
democratic republic
| parliamentary republic
|
|
Independence date
|
15 September 1821 (from Spain)
| 1829 (from the Ottoman Empire)
|
| Religions |
Roman Catholic 76.3%, Evangelical 13.7%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.3%, other Protestant 0.7%, other 4.8%, none 3.2%
| Greek Orthodox 98%, Muslim 1.3%, other 0.7%
|
| Languages |
Spanish (official), English
| Greek 99% (official), other 1% (includes English and French)
|
| Exports |
bananas, pineapples, coffee, melons, ornamental plants, sugar; seafood; electronic components, medical equipment
| food and beverages, manufactured goods, petroleum products, chemicals, textiles
|
| External Debt |
$10,050,000,000 $
| $583,300,000,000 US
|
| Exchange Rate |
Costa Rican colones (CRC) per US dollar - 529.62 (2008 est.), 519.53 (2007), 511.3 (2006), 477.79 (2005), 437.91 (2004)
| euros (EUR) per US dollar - 0.6734 (2008 est.), 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004)
|
| Military Budget as percentage of GDP |
0.600%
| 4.300%
|
| Beijing Olympics Medal Count |
0
| 4
|
| Location |
Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Nicaragua and Panama
| Southern Europe, bordering the Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea, between Albania and Turkey
|
| Area |
51,100 km sq
| 131,957 km sq
|
| Coastline |
1,290 km
| 13,676 km
|
| Climate |
tropical and subtropical; dry season (December to April); rainy season (May to November); cooler in highlands
| temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers
|
|
|
|
