10 July 2026

Costa Rica’s Legislative Assembly has given a final approval for reforms to boost plans for a marina in Limón. This would herald a major push for tourism in the Caribbean region of the country.

Controversial former President Rodrigo Chaves will oversee the project which, combined with reforms to JAPDEVA, has raised the hackles of critics. However, proponents of the project argue this will allow authorities to seek strategic partners for construction in Limón.

The plans consist of a marina and cruise terminal on the Caribbean coast and it received unanimous support from all 50 lawmakers.

Once it receives President Laura Fernández’s signature, the plan will become law. The reform changes JAPDEVA’s organic law to allow the state port authority to enter into alliances with public or private partners whether they be national or foreign entities. This will allow the agency to develop large projects on an infrastructure, tourism, commerce, technology and service basis.

Chaves proposed a US$10bn plan for a marina in Limón during his presidency but opponents in Congress eventually blocked it by citing JAPDEVA’s own regulations. The plans for Limón have been discussed for years and the reform does not mean that construction will start on the marina. Instead, JAPDEVA can pursue projects with oversight from technical studies, economic justification and oversight. Each alliance has to be approved by the agency’s board of directors with a 50 year limit on agreements. Projects will still be subject to oversight from the Comptroller General Office, the main public sector spending watchdog.

An additional 1.5% fee on gross income will be added to each alliance to help finance supervision and oversight. This was at the recommendation of the Comptroller Office who had expressed reservations of how strategic alliances would be used in public infrastructure projects and whether they were ways to get around PPP laws.

The final version of the bill added that projects on JAPDEVA public land cannot lose public ownership. Nor can it be sold, leased or used as collateral.

Critics argue this is a rewritten version of Chaves’s “Ley Jaguar” which suffered constitutional problems and remained unfulfilled at the end of his presidency. Chaves will oversee a team made up of officials from the Ministry of Public Works (MOPT), ICT (Tourism Institute), JAPDEVA, Minae (Environment Ministry), Finance and the Presidency.

“I entrust this project to Mr. Rodrigo; he will coordinate the team. (…) This isn’t about favouritism, because this is giving a great deal of additional responsibility to someone who already manages two ministries, but honor to whom honor is due, and I told them I’m going to take advantage of his experience,” said President Fernández.

The marina and cruise terminal is a project valued at US$900mn and would generate thousands of direct and indirect jobs and spearhead Limón’s development.

“I told them I’m going to take advantage of his experience. Mr. Rodrigo, of the entire cabinet, is the one with the most experience in financial structuring, because I’m sure we’re going to hunt for private investors willing to take advantage of the beauty of the Costa Rican Caribbean,” added Fernández.

The jobs created are essential to combatting drug trafficking and insecurity in the area, argued Fernández. The president promised that the project would be free of corruption and would promote Limón as a world-class tourism destination.

“I come here today to sign a pact with you, a pact that we will develop this project with excellence, with transparency, free of corruption and cronyism. We will develop this project, but not as an isolated project; it will be linked to a comprehensive development model, which is what this province needs,” concluded Fernández.

Source: Central America Briefing | Vol 14, Issue 14

26 June 2026

Regional economies are on course to outperform Latin American rivals with substantial economic growth shown by recent central bank results.

The news will be a boost for Central American governments that have been proactive in dealing with inflation, diversified their trading partners and exports and taken advantage of the World Cup bounce.

Nicaragua’s economy grew by 6.1% in Q1 2026, Panama’s by 4.8% in the same period, Costa Rica and Guatemala’s economic activity grew 4.5-4.6% from January-April. The Honduran Central Bank reported 3.5% growth so far in 2026. This is in contrast to forecasts for Latin America which puts GDP growth at 2.1-2.3% for this year.

Long term issues such as structural challenges, weak institutions, political instability, high borrowing costs and access to finance remain which makes Central America’s growth all the more impressive. Costa Rica’s growth was driven by financial services, construction and IT services. However, exports from the country’s free trade zones have softened due to lower global demand. For an export industry built on medical technology making 48-52% of sales, this could become a larger issue.

Guatemala’s growth has been defined by strong domestic and regional trade which includes Central American exports outselling those to the US for the first time in the country’s history. Between the two, they brought in US$3.69bn. Manufacturing has increased and remittances remain strong with a 10.5% year-on-year growth to US$8.43bn in the first quarter.

Under new President Nasry Asfura, Honduras has attempted to tackle its major issues such as a lack of employment opportunities, violence and debt at the National Electric Energy Company (ENEE). Growth has been concentrated in financial services, telecommunications and agro-industry, especially coffee. 

The Banco Central de Nicaragua (BCN) announced growth of 6.1% in the first quarter of 2026.

“Economic activity maintained the growth rate of previous quarters, with quarterly GDP registering year-on-year growth of 6.1% (5.9% in the previous quarter),” said a BCN statement.

For 2026, the BCN estimates total growth of 3.5-4.5% and inflation between 2.5% and 3.5%. Mining led Nicaragua’s economic impetus with a 24% year-on-year growth with construction not far behind at 16.7%. Trade showed impressive results of a 15.8% rise, hotels and restaurants were up 9.8% and agriculture and livestock rounded out the top five with a 6.8% improvement.

However, not all sectors showed growth and fishing and aquaculture suffered with a 10% drop. Electricity (-3.9%) and public administration and defence (-3%) also showed negative growth.

Consumption grew by 3.6% whereas strong domestic demand was down to fixed investments at 10.9% growth. Net external demand was led by exports with 12.9% growth, outpacing imports which grew by 5.8%.

This would be the sixth year running for GDP growth in Nicaragua following a contraction from 2018-2020 which included the Covid-19 pandemic effects.

Panama’s economy grew by 4.8% in Q1 2026 with the Canal leading the way. Transportation, storage and mail all had strong performances but the economy was driven by a 5.4% increase in Canal revenues.

The National Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC) reported that the Canal and construction and trade were the main impetus for growth. GDP reached US$22.55bn in the first quarter, a US$1.03bn rise year-on-year.

Transport, storage and mail had the largest growth at 8.2% thanks to Canal revenues and services for the increased number of ships passing through. Average daily crossings have increased to 41, compared to 36-37 normally due to the Middle Eastern crisis. Traffic through the Canal represents 3-6% of total global trade.    

Construction had a growth of 6.5% due to an increase in residential building and public infrastructure works. Trade was just behind at 6.4% with fuels, construction material, textiles, food and beverages and other consumer goods leading this sector.

Protests in Bocas del Toro over pension reform for banana plantation workers saw an 80.6% drop in banana exports that accounted for the contraction in agriculture of -4.3%. Fish (-16.4%) and milk (-11.6%) also showed heavy losses.

Panama’s economy is expected to grow by 3.8-4.1% this year according to multilateral organisations.

Source: Central America Briefing | Vol 14, Issue 13