Skip to main content

Jose Maria Figueres Olsen Biography

José María Figueres Olsen

(San José, 1954) Costa Rican politician who was President of the Republic (1994-1998).Jose María Figueres Olsen was the son of Karen Olsen Beck and José Figueres Ferrer, a leader of Catalan origin considered the father of modern Costa Rica, founder of the National Liberation Party (PLN) in 1951 and president of the country three times.

José María Figueres Olsen

He completed his primary studies at the La Lucha school and at the Humboldt school and secondary at Lincoln School.He graduated from West Point Military Academy with a degree in industrial engineering, and later expanded his studies at Harvard.At the end of his studies, he joined the companies founded by his father, which at that time were going through difficult times, mired in the economic crisis that devastated Costa Rica at the beginning of the eighties of the 20th century.José María Figueres managed to save family businesses and also created new ones that considerably increased the family fortune.

During the first term of President Óscar Arias (1986-1990), Jose María Figueres Olsen held the position of director of the Instituto Costarricense de Ferrocarriles (INCOFER), with which he began his political activity.Subsequently, he was director of the Board of Administration and Development of the Atlantic Slope (JAPDEVA), Minister of Foreign Trade and Minister of Agriculture.

After the death of his father in 1990, sectors of the PLN proposed that promote his candidacy for the presidency, to which he dedicated himself for some time, except for a brief hiatus in 1991 to do a master's degree at Harvard University.The official designation was reached in June 1993, after defeating other candidates in a national convention, including Óscar Arias's wife, Margarita Peñón.In the elections held on February 6, 1994, he was elected President of the Republic of Costa Rica by defeating by few votes the official candidate of the Christian Democratic Unity Party (PUSC), Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Echeverría, of Christian Democratic tendency.They were the closest elections in the history of the country, which were defined by only two points of difference.

After his victory in the elections, Figueres Olsen reiterated his commitments made during the electoral campaign to improve education and health and boost the country's progress.Thus, during his tenure, the health care program based on the so-called EBAIS (Basic Equipment for Comprehensive Health Care) was designed and developed, which was very effective in improving health indices.

Important investments were also made in science and technology, telemedicine and environmental conservation programs and strategies, in order to create the foundations to advance towards the information society and sustainable development.With this, it was possible to attract high-tech companies such as Intel and many others.He also applied a plan to reduce public debt that included higher taxes and a privatization policy.He was succeeded in the presidency by Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Echeverría, winner of the 1998 presidential elections.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

José Bonifácio de Andrada e Silva Biography

José Bonifácio de Andrada e Silva (Santos, Brazil, 1763-Niteroi, id., 1838) Brazilian politician and scientist.He traveled through Europe dedicated to the study of mineralogy, and came into contact with the Enlightenment.In 1819, with an established prestige, he returned to Brazil and was involved in the decisive events that took place in the then colony.Member of the Freemasonry and close collaborator of the future Pedro I, he contributed to the preparation of the independence movement of 1822, which proclaimed Pedro I Emperor of Brazil.Later, and in view of the new political events that distanced him from the king, he emigrated to France (1823-1829).In 1831, and after the monarch's abdication of his five-year-old son, the future Pedro II, he returned to Brazil as the young king's tutor.

Joseph H. Maclagan Wedderburn Biography

Joseph H.Maclagan Wedderburn (Forfar, 1882-Princeton, 1948) British mathematician.Professor at Princeton University, he was editor of the Proceedings of the Edinburgh mathematical society (1905-1909) and the Annals of mathematics (1912-1928).He stated a theorem ( Wedderburn's theorem ) according to which every finite field is commutative.

Social classes in the Roman Empire: Patricios, Noble Commoners and Gentlemen Commoners

The Roman Empire has been one of the most powerful, extensive and important in the history of Humanity.Many peoples fell under the yoke of Rome, and today you can still admire the architectural remains of a civilization that reached a splendor almost absolute.However, in the Roman Empire there were great differences between the different strata that made up the society.Although from the oldest civilizations there were already different orders or "classes", today we focus on the different social classes in the Roman Empire: Patricios, Noble Commoners and Gentlemen Plebeians . Social classes in the Roman Empire The Roman civilization is one of the most complex societies of universal history.Given its long duration (since 8th century BC until the 5th century AD ) historians have divided the History of Rome into different historical periods: Monarchy, Republic of Empire .Today I propose you to enter the most splendid years of the Roman Empire ( sI and II BC .), ...

Georg Hermann Quincke Biography

Georg Hermann Quincke (Frankfurt am Oder, 1834-Heidelberg, 1924) German physicist.He studied at the University of Berlin, where he obtained his degree in 1865.He was an assistant professor at said University, in 1872 he was head of the University of Wurzburg and in 1875 of Heidelberg.He conducted research on the most well-known molecular phenomena, such as capillarity, flocculation, electrophoresis, and surface tension.He also investigated the phenomena of optical reflection on metal surfaces and optical interference.He built various measuring devices, such as an acoustic thermometer and a magnetic manometer.A certain device that allows the wavelength of sound waves to be measured through interference phenomena is called the Quincke tube.

Jorge Negrete Biography

Jorge Negrete (Jorge Alberto Negrete Moreno; Guanajuato, 1911-Los Angeles, 1953) Mexican singer and actor whose personal appeal and unmistakable voice raised him to the category of myth of the music of his country.His film appearances and his tumultuous romantic relationships with well-known stars of the moment undoubtedly contributed to this.In a Mexico that was still suffering from the aftermath of the civil strife of the Revolution, the patriotic style of Jorge Negrete's songs, in which values ​​such as virility, courage or family were extolled, took root in a society in need of myths on which to rebuild a national identity. Jorge Negrete At age 16 he entered the Military College; curiously, Negrete seemed to start a promising career: he soon graduated as a lieutenant in administration and, in 1930, he was already appointed second captain and carried out military studies in Paris and Rome.But in parallel to his military work, Negrete took singing classes with the prestigi...

Georges Clemenceau Biography

Georges Clemenceau (Mouilleron-en-Pareds, 1841-Paris, 1929) French politician and journalist.As a journalist and leader of the parliamentary left, he was one of the most influential men in French politics in the late 19th century.During his second term as Prime Minister (1917-1919), he led the war effort that led France to triumph over the Axis powers, and played an essential role in the peace talks that concluded in the Treaty of Versailles, establishing himself as one of the most important figures in politics of his time. Georges Clemenceau He was the first of six children from a humble family.Born and raised in a region of strong traditionalism, Clemenceau received, however, from a very young age, the anticlerical and progressive influence of his father, Benjamin, imbued with the ideals of the Enlightenment and the French Revolution.At the age of twelve he entered the Lycée de Nantes.During his student days in that city, he was introduced, through his father, into the politic...

Ivar Aasen Biography

Ivar Aasen (Volden, 1813-Oslo, 1896) Norwegian linguist and poet.Founder of the landsmaal or national language based on indigenous dialects.Self-taught, he is the author of a Grammar of Norwegian popular speech (1848) and of a Dictionary of Norwegian popular speech (1850).He also wrote botanical works, a collection of poems and a lyrical drama ( The heir , 1855).

Jose Zapiola Biography

José Zapiola (José Zapiola Cortés; Santiago, 1802-1885) Chilean musician and writer.Self-taught clarinetist, he is remembered as the author of the Yungay hymn (1839).Created in commemoration of the triumph of the Chilean forces against the troops of the Peru-Bolivian Confederation in the Battle of Yungay (1839), the lyrics of this hymn were written by Ramón Rengifo; The composition of the music fell to Zapiola.The Yungay anthem was publicly performed on April 8, 1839, the day the government offered festivities to celebrate the victory. José Zapiola José Zapiola developed an intense musical and institutional activity throughout his life.In charge of directing the military bands (1823-1832), he participated in the founding of the Santiago Philharmonic Society (1826) and the magazine Semanario Musical (1852).Later he was director of the Conservatory of Music (1857-1858) and teacher of the Cathedral of Santiago (1864-1874). In the political field he was the founder of the Societ...

Joseph I Bonaparte Biography

José I Bonaparte (Ajaccio, France, 1768-Florence, 1844) King of Spain (1808-1812).Napoleon Bonaparte's older brother, he studied law and devoted himself to business.His brother appointed him King of Naples and, later, in 1808, of Spain, to which he immediately moved. José I Bonaparte When he arrived in Madrid, Spain was in revolt due to the mutiny of May 2, and he barely had time to settle down, as he had to leave hurriedly before the French defeat in Bailén.After the intervention of Napoleon himself, with the bulk of the French army, he was able to establish his government in the capital of the kingdom, but his liberal and enlightened measures met with popular hostility, which made him the victim of ridicule regarding his supposed alcoholism (he received the nickname by Pepe Botella ). After the battle of the Arapiles, and before the advance of the Duke of Wellington, he left Madrid taking a large amount of wealth, according to his detractors, and moved to Vitoria, where...

Heinrich maier Biography

Heinrich Maier (Heidenheim, 1867-Berlin, 1933) German philosopher.He produced a "critical realism", along the lines of H.Driesch.He is the author, among other works, of Aristotle's syllogistics (1896-1900) and of The philosophy of reality (1926-1935).