The National Artificial Intelligence Strategy of Costa Rica 2024–2027

The National Artificial Intelligence Strategy of Costa Rica (NAIS) 2024–2027, developed by the Ministry of Science, Innovation, Technology, and Telecommunications (MICITT), is a comprehensive roadmap to integrate AI into the country’s development in an ethical, inclusive, and sustainable manner. It is built around human-centred principles, international cooperation, and practical lines of action to make Costa Rica a regional leader in responsible AI use.

Vision and objectives

Costa Rica sees AI as both a driver of growth and a challenge requiring careful governance. The strategy aims to promote adoption in health, education, public administration, and the private sector while ensuring ethical safeguards, equity, and human dignity remain central. It sets out to maximise social and economic benefits, reduce inequalities, protect rights, and align with global frameworks like OECD AI Principles, UNESCO recommendations, the EU AI Act, and the Hiroshima AI Process.

Principles

Seven guiding principles underpin the strategy:

• Peace and human dignity – reaffirming Costa Rica’s pacifist identity by prohibiting military use of AI.
• Human oversight – ensuring people remain accountable for AI-assisted decisions.
• Transparency and explainability – users must know when AI is in use and why.
• Equity and non-discrimination – auditing data and algorithms to prevent bias.
• Accountability – clear legal responsibility for AI outcomes.
• Sustainability and well-being – aligning AI with environmental and social ethics.
• Security and data protection – robust cybersecurity and privacy protections.

Cross-cutting principles include a gender perspective, inclusion and accessibility for vulnerable groups, privacy and intellectual property protections, support for R+D+i, and integrating AI education into curricula.

Strategic framework and lines of action

The strategy defines concrete axes of work:

• Education and talent: reskilling and upskilling programs, specialised AI curricula, and training teachers and public officials. Over 6,000 women have already been trained in AI-related skills with partners like Intel. Community Innovation Labs (CINL) extend training to rural areas.
• Infrastructure: expanding 5G, strengthening digital governance, and creating a National Center of Excellence in AI to lead research and innovation.
• Public sector AI: applying AI to optimise policy formulation, automate services, improve health systems (e.g., EDUS platform), and modernise administration.
• Private sector AI: supporting SMEs with AI adoption; already, over 70% are investing or planning to invest, mainly to stay competitive and improve customer service.
• Inclusion: policies for children, older adults, and people with disabilities; ensuring access to AI-enabled healthcare, education, mobility, and digital content.
• Risk management: adopting an EU-style classification of AI risks, building national capacity for incident response through MICITT’s Cybersecurity Directorate and the National Agency for Digital Government.
• International cooperation: active participation in OECD, GPAI, HAIP, and DEPA to shape global standards, particularly promoting equitable access and ‘Data Free Flow with Trust’ principles.

Opportunities and challenges

AI is projected to raise Costa Rica’s GDP growth by up to 7.8% annually by 2030, boost productivity, and help in areas like bioeconomy and decarbonization. Yet challenges remain: limited infrastructure, insufficient R&D investment, lack of AI-trained professionals, and risks such as job displacement, bias, cyberattacks, and data misuse. The strategy addresses these with safeguards, education, and inclusive governance