Costa Rica´s Police Officers Get Trained in Tourism

Costa Rican authorities are going to put more law enforcement officers on the streets to assist both local and foreign sunbathers, and to help boost the promotion of the nation’s travel industry. The real news is that those cops will get extensive training in tourism matters.

Costa Rica’s Vice Minister of Public Security, Ana Helena, was quoted as saying in the local press today that new graduates from the National Police Academy (NPA) will “help turn Costa Rica into a safer destination for travelers.”

”For tourists, police officers are the visible image of the Costa Rican people. This underscores the importance of their training,” she said.

NPA Principal Roberto Obando indicated that at least 800 police officers have already been trained in tourism and assigned to San Jose’s downtown area, Guanacaste, Limon, Puntarenas and the South Zone, all major tourist spots in the country.

Police training in tourism issues is done with the collaboration of the Costa Rica Tourism Institute and embraces such subject matters as Tourist Assistance and Interpersonal Communication.

In recent years, tourism has become one of Costa Rica’s top sources of hard-currency income, snaring 1.4 million visitors a year now compared to just 285,000 visitors some twenty years ago.