014 - Lessons learned from the pandemic and government´s emergency response in Costa Rica: data and perspectives for policy making cycle

As of June 20, 2022, approximately 540.963.088 cases of the disease and its variants have been reported in approximately 212 countries and territories worldwide according to the Johns Hopkins COVID monitoring database with a total of 6.323.007 deaths. On March 5, 2020, the first case of COVID-19 was reported in Costa Rica, which as of March 16, 2022, has evolved into a total of 827,426 confirmed cases (WHO, 2022). Government authorities have generated specific policies aimed at containing the spread of the disease, including the start of vaccination in December 2020, and the deployment of institutional action from various sides, in order to address the emergency, contain the spread of the disease and address the economic and social consequences. On March 16, 2020, through Executive Decree Nº42227-MP-S, a state of national emergency was declared throughout the territory of the Republic, and the phases of attention were established in accordance with the National Law on Risk Prevention and Attention to Risks and Attention to Emergencies[3] (Response, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction). According to the study conducted by Rojas and Romero (2021) which a Bayesian model revealed that as the number of COVID-19 cases increased, the measures generated the necessary counterweight to mitigate infection, while the diminished or slowed effect of stopping the growth was mainly noted in the epidemiological weeks when there was a strong acceleration preceded by a relaxation of measures. This complements a preliminary reading of the effect of the measures on the behavior of the pandemic, linked precisely to the intention of analyzing the political and institutional components and their impact on the decision-making processes. From the perspective of emergency attention and public administration, various analytical approaches have shown structural challenges in the face of the attention of high-impact emergency situations[3], linked to the articulation of public policy mechanisms, the multi-hazard scenario of the territory, the design of public policies and the use of follow-up and monitoring mechanisms, interlocution between actors, leadership[4], available resources, risk management system, coordination with international resources, institutional framework, and growing and changing threats and vulnerabilities in the world. Considering the lessons learned from one of the most relevant public health phenomena of the 21st century, which has generated a significant amount of knowledge, this work aims to collect it at the level of public administration and the management of emergencies at the national and local level. This narrative explores lessons learned in three areas: governance and public management; pandemic planning and management; and the risk management and emergency care system. From the perspective of governance and public management, an analysis of the variables of assessment of the decision-making process, inter-institutional coordination, transparency and accountability is incorporated, with special emphasis on two key aspects: monitoring and evaluation, as well as the use of evidence for decision-making.The use of a centralized system for data collection, the decision-making mechanisms and how a transitional organizational structure was set up to make decisions in an expeditious and concrete manner are highlighted. In this sense, the research contributes to the analysis of the use of data for decision making, highlighting fundamental elements around: the agents and actors involved, the impact on public policy and the identification of good practices from the institutional framework to strengthen national statistical systems. Investigation seeks to articulate a memory that will allow various sectors to have a starting point in the identification strengths and challenges in the the achievement of sustainable development and recovery in the medium and long term through efficient and resilient public administration.

Costa Rica

Covid 19 Pandemic

government´s emergency response

Public Administration

decision-making process

Policy Making Cycle