Luis Alberto Monge

Who is Luis Alberto Monge?

Luis Alberto Monge Álvarez was the President of Costa Rica from 1982 to 1986.

He was born in Palmares, Alajuela Province.

Before becoming President in 1982, he served as ambassador to Israel, was one of the founding members of the National Liberation Party in 1951. He was also named a deputy in the Legislative Assembly, at age 24, making him one of the youngest to reach such rank.

Monge inherited an impoverished and distraught nation. The biggest issues his presidency dealt with were: the unmanageable economic crisis, the mounting foreign debt and the Sandinista-Contra crisis involving Nicaragua, the United States and Costa Rica's northern border region.

In dealing with the country's economic situation, he began austere programs on public spending, eliminated many government subsidies to various activities and promoted exports and receptive tourism. He eliminated export and production taxes. Monge also reformed monetary law, and forced all foreign currencies to go through the national bank system. A lot of his efforts paid off, reducing inflation and unemployment.