Vice President concludes his visit to Paraguay and Costa Rica

Speaking of the need to reduce carbon footprint and conserve the environment, Naidu expressed happiness to have Costa Rica on board with us on the global platform of International Solar Alliance which has clean energy targets of 175 GW solar power.

The Vice President requested Costa Rican leadership to extend support for initiating reforms in the UN Security Council and asked for their valuable support for India’s candidatures coming up for elections to a number of multilateral fora including the a non-permanent seat of the UN Security Council for the term 2021-2022.

During the Meeting with the President of the Congress of the Republic of Costa Rica, Ms. Carolina Hidalgo Herrera, the Vice President highlighted India’s areas of strength that Costa Rica can benefit from, including Information Technology, Biotechnology, Space Technology, pharmaceuticals, hydroelectric generators, power plant equipments and railway construction.

The Vice President also attended a Luncheon hosted by the first Vice President of the Republic of Costa Rica, Ms. Epsy Campbell Barr. The two leaders discussed topics such as youth empowerment, promoting tourism, healthcare, financial inclusion, e-governance, space program, early childhood education programs, public transport and e-mobility. 

The Vice President addressed the Indian Community in San Jose, Costa Rica and complimented the members of the diaspora for Costa Rica for the esteem that they have won for themselves and India because of their high professional skills and competence.

The Vice President said that India has been a votary of peace and non-violence from time immemorial.  He strongly condemned the destructive forces of terrorism that continue to be a festering challenge, distracting our attention from development. ‘Peace will not thrive if the forces of terror continue their unchecked run’, he asserted.

Speaking from Costa Rica, a peace loving country, the Vice President called for a united, global response to the pervasive menace of terror. He also appealed for a concerted action at the global level on terror by concluding the United Nations Comprehensive Convention on international Terrorism.

Naidu urged all the nationsto realize the ever increasing serious threat of terror and come together to name and shame and isolate all forms of terror. He called for an effective global response to this global challenge.

At the India – Costa Rica Business Forum, the Vice President said that India and Costa Rica could collaborate in areas such as Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology, Digital Sciences and telecommunications, Agriculture and Food Processing, Renewable Energy, Space Research and Climate Change.

Naidu applauded the hard work and enterprise of Costa Rican entrepreneurs and engineers which made Costa Rica an important economy and a leading services sector hub in Central America.

The Vice President said that Costa Rica is an attractive tourist destination and could be brought on to the tourist circuit of Indian travelers.

Honorary Doctorate from University for Peace

The Vice President was also conferred an Honorary Doctorate by the University for Peace founded by the United Nations for his contribution “to the Rule of Law, democracy and sustainable development in India”.

In his acceptance speech, Naidu said “This (Honorary Doctorate) is more an honour for my country than to me as an individual. It is an honour bestowed on a country, a civilization and a culture that has been an ardent and consistent champion of peace since time immemorial. I am privileged to receive this honour when the world is commemorating the 150th Birth Anniversary of Gandhi Ji, the extraordinary apostle of peace”.

The visit of Vice President to the two countries has advanced India’s outreach to the important countries in the region. This visit will give an opportunity to provide impetus to bilateral relations in trade and investment, ICT, renewable energy including hydel energy, education, healthcare, space and people to people linkages.

During the visit to both the countries there were fruitful and cordial exchanges covering a range of areas of mutual interest spanning bilateral, regional and multilateral fields.