President Rodrigo Chaves has withdrawn Costa Rica’s support for the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda, stripping institutional funding and public interest status from the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), according to an extraordinary decree published in the official gazette on April 2, 2025. The move, if enacted, would mark a dramatic shift for a nation long hailed as a global leader in sustainability.
The 2030 Agenda, adopted by UN member states in 2015, aims to eradicate poverty, combat climate change, and ensure human rights by 2030. Costa Rica’s past alignment with these goals—evident in its renewable energy achievements and biodiversity protections—makes this decision a potential turning point.
Environmental group Bloque Verde condemned the withdrawal, calling it an “ecocidal policy” that undermines Costa Rica’s credibility. With the country set to co-host the Third UN Conference on the Ocean in June 2025, the group questioned, “With what legitimacy can the government lead a summit rooted in SDG 14, which protects marine life?” They cited recent controversies—such as a shark fin transfer scandal, weakened oversight in the Gandoca-Manzanillo Refuge, and raised pesticide limits in drinking water—as evidence of environmental backsliding under Chaves.
The decision could ripple internationally, dimming Costa Rica’s image as an ecological pioneer and jeopardizing cooperation projects tied to the SDGs. A UN official, speaking anonymously, expressed “deep concern” about the timing, given the ocean summit’s reliance on global unity.
Chaves’s administration has not detailed its reasoning, though analysts speculate budget constraints or a push for national sovereignty may be factors. Opposition leaders have yet to respond formally, but public debate is intensifying. Bloque Verde urged the government to reverse course, pleading, “Protect our forests, rivers, and people—only then can we defend our oceans.
