Costa Rica Strengthens Digital Resilience After Cyberattack
Costa Rica is taking big strides to strengthen its digital infrastructure after a ransomware assault in 2022 that disrupted about 30 federal agencies and brought the country’s tax system to a halt. The event showed how dangerous it is to be vulnerable online, costing millions of dollars in damages and damaging people’s faith in government processes.
As a result, the government has started a countrywide program with UNESCO to improve its civil service by teaching AI and digital transformation skills. The objective is to get public institutions ready for future crises and make sure that governance is safe and uses technology.
Nationwide AI And Digital Transformation Initiative
The initiative that Costa Rica and UNESCO are working on together is meant to reach more than 300 public organizations, including 91 municipal governments. This whole-of-government model attempts to bring together AI and digital skills at all levels of government, from city halls to national ministries.
Every public worker will learn how to use AI and become more digitally literate through extensive training. This will help them better manage government data, provide better services, and protect important infrastructure from cyber attacks.
Supporting The National AI Strategy (ENIA 2024–2027)
This project directly helps Costa Rica’s National Artificial Intelligence Strategy (ENIA 2024–2027), which the Ministry of Science, Innovation, Technology, and Telecommunications (MICITT) started in October 2024. The initiative is also based on UNESCO’s AI Readiness Assessment, which looked at how ready Costa Rica was to control AI in a fair and effective way.
These guidelines guarantee that the country’s public institutions can use AI responsibly, striking a balance between innovation, openness, and citizen trust.
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Pillar One: Capacity Building Through AI Education
The initial part of the project is about teaching and training people about AI. On November 10, 2025, UNESCO and the University of Oxford launched a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on AI and Digital Transformation in Government.
This course gives you a basic grasp of how AI might be used in government, and it is followed with in-person seminars that are specific to the needs of each institution. “The course is meant to change uncertainty into curiosity and adaptability into a strength,” said Paula Bogantes Zamora, the Minister of Science, Innovation, Technology, and Telecommunications.
Pillar Two: Fostering Innovation With AI Tools Radar
The second pillar is about innovation through the AI Tools Radar, a curated portal that shows the finest practices and tools for using AI in public administration throughout the world. This repository lets Costa Rica’s agencies use AI solutions that have been evaluated and are ethical and that meet international standards.
The country wants to improve service delivery, data management, and decision-making by using these tools together. This will make its government a regional leader in responsible AI governance.
Pillar Three: Strengthening Academic And Research Collaboration
The SPARK-AI Alliance is a global network that links schools of public administration with AI research institutes. It is the third pillar that connects public entities with academia. The University of Costa Rica’s School of Public Administration is very important since it keeps the country up-to-date on the latest AI research and worldwide innovation trends.
This academic alliance will encourage ongoing learning, new policies, and ethical AI frameworks, which will help researchers, politicians, and international experts work together.
UNESCO Emphasizes Responsible And Inclusive AI Use
Tawfik Jelassi, UNESCO’s Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information, talked about how the project is focused on people. He remarked, “People are what will make digital governance work in the future.” “By investing in government capabilities, Costa Rica makes sure that technology serves people, not the other way around.”
Jelassi said that improving the skills of civil servants will help people trust AI systems and make sure that digital technologies are utilized fairly and openly in all government work.
A Global Model For AI-Driven Governance
Costa Rica’s proactive response is a new way for governments to become digital. The government is getting its public sector ready for the difficulties of a world that is becoming more and more digital by combining AI training, innovation infrastructure, and academic collaboration.
This cooperation with UNESCO shows how governments can turn problems into opportunities by utilizing AI to make people more resilient, make institutions stronger, and make sure that all citizens have a safe digital future.
