i. History

How and Why It Was Created

The Software Sector Competitiveness Support Program (Prosoftware), together with the Costa Rican Chamber of Information and Communication Technologies (Camtic) – known as the Chamber of Software Producers of Costa Rica (Caprosoft) during that time – led a process of research and diagnosis of the ITC sector in Costa Rica.
The analysis culminated with the design and presentation of an strategic national development plan, known to optimize the use of financial resources destined to this particular sector.

Process

After a great deal of discussion and planning, the proposal's design process took more than a year, and was carried out with help from the International Center of Economic Policy of the National University (CINPE), the Center for Technological Gestation and Computing (CEGESTI) and the experts Dr. Brian Nicholson from Manchester University, UK, and Dr. Sundeep Sahay from Oslo University, Norway.

The study proved strengths and weaknesses in Costa Rica’s ITC sector. It was demonstrated how development is hindered at a high cost by a limiting telecommunications capability, poor international customer service experience, and a low number of experts with a satisfactory fluency in the English language. Among some of the strengths, there was a high creative capacity from human capital, the geographic proximity and cultural affinity with the US, which in turn generates a cost reduction in this particular market.

This process contemplated the investigation and diagnosis of the ICT sector of Costa Rica and culminated with the conception of a global strategy that includes all the industry's segments ( ICT Areas ):

• ICT Producers
• ICT Direct Services
• ICT Enabled Services
• ICT Components
• Key Services

ii. Why a Strategy?

Ever since 1870, Costa Rica has promoted free and compulsory access to education. The strategy will allow the country to take advantage of the social investment that it has carried out for many decades, in a way where the intellect and the aggregated value are the base for success.

1. Strategy’s Vision

“We will be an important international provider of innovative and high value added information and communication technologies products and services; a center of convergence with local and international linkages in an ecologically friendly, democratic, and safe environment.”

2. Benefits

- Improves the macroeconomic environment and external sector, which facilitates Costa Rica’s integration to new competition models.
- Allows transforming Costa Rica into an investment growth environment.
- Encourages access to knowledge and wealth distribution.
- Helps create new job opportunities, in response to the yearly 1,500 ITC graduates.
- Encourages domestic ITC exports, that according to the Promoter of External Commerce (Procomer), last year sales reached $410 millions, excluding Intel, in other words, a 6.7% of total national exports.

3. Objectives

Main objective: Convey all the efforts from different entities to optimize the use of resources (financial, human, infrastructure, technological) and generate the necessary components to create an adequate national “habitat” suitable for the TIC sector

Specific Objectives

1. Provide an adequate environment to create and develop business in a sustainable and competitive approach.
2. Encourage and stimulate innovation, intellectual property creation, and the generation of high aggregate value business.
3. Integrate and represent in an effective manner the segments that make up the ICT sector.
4. Develop business, political, financial and knowledge relationships and networking.
5. Position and support the sector so that it becomes a successful provider of international products and services.

iii. Specialized Working Groups (GTE’s)

1. To achieve these objectives, five Specialized Working Groups (GTE’s, for its Spanish acronym) were created who are in charged of designing and developing a strategic planning process that allows to adequately rank Costa Rica’s ITC sector within global market, and in this way, channel the main sector player’s efforts in the same direction.

   Every GT is made up of different ICT industry members as well as other relevant institutions, which will work and be guided by Camtic representatives.



2. GTE’s:

1. Human Resource:
   In charge of training Costa Rican human capital to respond to market necessities. View Members
2. Financing:
   In charge of promoting the delivery of non-fiscal economic incentives and financial resource pursuit. View Members
3. Marketing:
   In charge of the promoting the country as a top tier ICT international market provider. View Members
4. Infrastructure:
   Works together with the concerning organizations in order to assure the delivery of strategic and quality services and optimize the legal framework. View Members
5. Organization:
   Provides supporting services to the companies associated with Camtic, coordinates the work and communication between committees and supports the creation of suitable economic, social and political conditions enhance the ICT sector growth.

CAMTIC - Members & Products - Camtic Services- ITC Habitat- National ICT Strategy