Rodrigo Alberto de Jesús Chaves Robles (; born 10 June 1961) is a Costa Rican politician and economist who has served as the 49th and current President of Costa Rica since May 2022. He was previously Minister of Finance from 2019 to 2020 during the presidency of Carlos Alvarado Quesada.

Biography
Chaves Robles was born in the metropolitan district of Carmen, in the central canton of San José, on 10 June 1961. He obtained a B.S., M.A., and Ph.D. in agricultural economics from Ohio State University. Before his appointment as minister, he worked as the World Bank country director for Indonesia and countries of America, Europe and Asia.

In 1992, before completing his Ph.D., the Institute for International Development at Harvard University offered him a four-month fellowship to conduct field research on poverty, rural poverty, microenterprise, and medium enterprise in Indonesia. When he finished his doctorate, the World Bank offered him a job for the publication of his research.

Chaves announced that he made the decision to retire as a World Bank official and return to Costa Rica because he considered that if he had requested a leave of absence, there could be a conflict of interest due to the conversations he had to have with that organization as part of his ministerial management. However, in August 2021, when the results of an investigation into allegations of sexual harassment against Chaves were made public, it was reported that it could be the reason for his resignation from the World Bank. The World Bank's administrative tribunal noted that an internal investigation found that from 2008 to 2013, Chaves made unwelcome comments about physical appearance, repeated sexual innuendo and unwelcome sexual advances toward multiple bank employees. Those details were repeated by the bank's human resources department in a letter to Chaves, but it decided to sanction him for misconduct rather than sexual harassment. Chaves denied all accusations of sexual harassment.

Minister of Finance
The president of Costa Rica, Carlos Alvarado Quesada, announced Chaves as the new Minister of Finance on 30 October 2019; however, it was not until 26 November of that year that he took office and indicated that his priorities would be to ensure compliance with fiscal laws, increase the collection of existing taxes, combat tax evasion and continue with the containment of public spending.

In February 2020, Chaves presented a bill to the Legislative Assembly to use the surpluses of public institutions to pay the debt.

During that same month, Chaves made changes in the hierarchies of the institution, for which the deputy minister of income, Vladimir Villalobos González, resigned; the General Director of Taxation, Carlos Vargas Durán, the General Director of Customs, Juan Carlos Gómez Sánchez, and the director of the Fiscal Police, Irving Malespín Muñoz, also tendered their resignations.

On 26 March 2020, during the health emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Chaves announced to the media a proposal to collect a solidarity tax on public and private wages in excess of 500,000 colones in order to obtain resources to support people whose contract had been suspended, their working hours had been reduced, or they were left without work as a result of the measures adopted by the Government to stop contagion. After criticism from some sectors, Alvarado ruled out such an idea. The Minister of Communication, Nancy Marín, told the press that: "The President has been clear that Mr. Rodrigo should not have made that announcement. It was never contemplated that it go to salaries of 500,000 colones. The minister should not have made that announcement. [It was not a decision made] in the terms in which he presented it."

On 22 April 2020, the director of the Costa Rican Social Security Fund (CCSS), Mario Devandas, publicly denounced that the Minister of Finance had said in a meeting in which Alvarado participated that "nothing could be done to save the Fund, because the country could not go bankrupt to save it".

On 19 May 2020, Chaves published a letter asking Alvarado to veto the law approved that day by Congress that excluded municipalities from the fiscal rule created by Law 9635. Alvarado refused and Chaves responded by submitting his resignation.

2022 Costa Rican general election

In July 2021 Rodrigo Chaves announced his candidacy for the Presidency of the Republic of Costa Rica.

As part of his campaign, the Chaves-led Social Democratic Progress Party sought to combat corruption by punishing those who do not report acts of misconduct. Chaves stated he was in favor of transparency between the government and the press, universities and citizens, and that he planned to foster it through a daily report of the activities carried out by public institutions. His plan regarding unemployment involved encouraging more women to join the workforce and to raise the number of STEM graduates in response to the growing demand. He also supported bilingual education and promised to welcome foreign businesses to Costa Rica. To top off his campaign, he proposed a five-step plan to lower the cost of living. The five step plan involved removing taxes from basic food and household items, lowering the price of rice, lowering the price of electricity, eliminating monopolies and supporting farmers to import more efficient agrochemicals. He also said that he did not support mandatory COVID-19 vaccination.

He favours a strict ban on abortion, including in cases of rape, and is opposed to euthanasia and same-sex marriages (although these have been allowed in Costa Rica since 2020).

Reuters reported that Chaves had carved out an anti-establishment reputation. Rotsay Rosales, a political scientist and head of the National Policy Observatory of the University of Costa Rica, said, "Chaves has a liberal economic position, is socially conservative, pro-law and order and against the political class."

On the night of 6 February, it was announced that Rodrigo Chaves was to face former president José María Figueres Olsen of the PLN party, in a second electoral round to be held on 3 April. Several polls for the second round placed Chaves in first place ahead of Figures. On 3 April, Chaves' victory over Figueres was announced by the press. Speaking to supporters in San José, Chaves said he accepted his victory with humility, and urged Figueres to help him move the country forward. Figueres quickly conceded defeat after results came in, telling supporters: "I congratulate Rodrigo Chaves, and I wish him the best." On Twitter, incumbent president Carlos Alvarado Quesada said he had called to congratulate Chaves and pledged an orderly handover of power.

Presidency 
Chaves took office on 8 May 2022 and became the 49th president of Costa Rica He was sworn in with a bible in his hand and stated in his inaugural speech that "the fear of God is the basis of a ruler's wisdom"..

Cyber attack on Costa Rican government 

After a month - starting on April 17 - of crippling ransomware attacks against the former government and its replacement, newly-elected President Chaves declared a state of emergency, in order to deal with the cyber attacks. The declaration said the attacks were "unprecedented in the country" and that it interrupted the country's tax collection and exposed citizens’ personal information. Leon Weinstok, the director of the Costa Rica office of the law firm BLP, who specializes in cybersecurity law, said the attacks had severely affected the country's ability to function. The Russian-speaking Conti gang had claimed responsibility for the cyber attacks. The US state department had in response offered a $10m reward for information leading to the identification or location of Conti leaders.

COVID-19 policies 

Chaves eliminated pandemic-related obligatory use of masks in public spaces and issued a decree that urged public institutions not to sanction officials who had not been vaccinated against COVID-19, reversing his predecessor's policy. He also promised there would be an investigation into the contracts signed by the previous government.

Escazú agreement 
Believing that the fight against global warming is not a priority, he refuses to ratify the Escazú agreement, in order to "reassure the private sector." The agreement, drafted in 2018, endorsed the right of access to information of citizens on environmental issues and their participation in relevant decision-making. He also announced that he wanted to revive the exploitation of mining, gas and oil resources.

References

External links

Biography by CIDOB (in Spanish)

Living people
1961 births
Government ministers of Costa Rica
Politicians from San José, Costa Rica
Finance ministers of Costa Rica
Ohio State University alumni
Presidents of Costa Rica
로드리고 알베르토 데 헤수스 차베스 로블레스(, 1961년 6월 10일 ~ )는 코스타리카의 경제학자이자 정치인으로, 코스타리카의 제49대 대통령이다. 카를로스 알바라도 대통령 재임 중 재무장관을 지냈다.

생애 
로드리고 로블레스는 1961년 6월 10일 코스타리카의 수도 산호세 중심부의 카르멘 대도시 지역에서 태어났다. 그는 경제학 박사 학위를 취득했다. 장관으로 임명되기 전에는 인도네시아와 미국, 유럽, 아시아 각국에서 세계은행 국가 책임자로 일했다.

1992년, 박사과정을 마치기 전에 하버드 대학의 국제개발연구소는 차베스에게 인도네시아에서 빈곤, 농촌 빈곤, 소규모 기업 및 중규모 기업에 대한 현장 연구를 수행하기 위한 4개월간의 펠로우쉽을 제안했다. 그가 박사 학위를 마쳤을 때, 세계은행은 그에게 그의 연구 발표를 위한 일자리를 제공했다.

차베스는 세계은행 간부직에서 은퇴하고 코스타리카로 돌아가기로 결정했다고 밝혔다. 만약 코스타리카가 휴가를 요청했다면 장관 업무의 일환으로 코스타리카와 대화를 나눴기 때문에 코스타리카와 이해관계가 충돌할 수 있다는 점을 고려했기 때문이다. 그러나 2021년 8월 차베스에 대한 성추행 의혹 조사 결과가 알려지면서 세계은행 퇴진 이유가 될 수 있다는 보도가 나왔다.

재무장관 
코스타리카 대통령 카를로스 알바라도 케사다는 2019년 10월 30일 차베스를 새 재무장관으로 발표했다. 그러나 그가 취임한 것은 그해 11월 26일이었고 그의 우선 순위는 재정법 준수를 보장하고 기존 세금 징수를 늘리며 탈세를 방지하고 공공 지출을 계속 억제하는 것이라고 밝혔다.

2020년 2월, 차베스는 공공기관의 잉여금을 부채 상환에 사용하는 법안을 입법회에 제출했다.

같은 달에 차베스는 기관의 계층 구조를 변경했으며, 이에 대해 소득 차관은 사임했다. 세무국장 카를로스 바르가스 두란 세관국장, 후안 카를로스 고메즈 산체스, 재정경찰국장 어빙 말레스핀 무뇨스도 사임했다.

2020년 3월 26일, 코로나 바이러스 대유행으로 인한 보건 비상사태 때, 차베스는 계약이 중단되거나 근로 시간이 단축되거나 방치된 사람들을 지원하기 위한 자원을 확보하기 위해 50만 콜론 이상의 공공 및 민간 임금에 대한 연대세를 징수하는 제안을 언론에 발표했다. 정부가 전염을 막기 위해 채택한 조치의 결과로 일을 하지 않고 있다. 알바라도는 일부 부문에서 비판이 일자 이런 비판을 부정했다. 낸시 마린 통신부 장관은 기자들에게 "대통령은 로드리고씨가 그 발표를 하지 말았어야 했다는 것을 분명히 했다. 50만 콜로네의 급여가 될 것이라고는 전혀 생각되지 않았다. 장관은 그 발표를 하지 말았어야 했다. (급여는) 그가 제시한 조건으로 결정된 것이 아니다."라고 말했다.

2020년 4월 22일, 코스타리카 사회보장기금(CCSS)의 이사 마리오 데반다스는 재무장관이 알바라도가 참여한 회의에서 "기금을 구하기 위해 할 수 있는 일은 아무것도 없다"라고 말했다고 공개적으로 비난했다.

2020년 5월 19일, 차베스는 알바라도에게 9635법에 의해 제정된 재정 규칙에서 지방자치체를 제외시킨 그 날 의회에서 승인한 법에 대해 거부권을 행사해 줄 것을 요청하는 서한을 발행했다. 알바라도는 거절했고 차베스는 사표를 제출하는 것으로 응수했다.

2022년 코스타리카 대통령 선거
2021년 7월 로드리고 차베스는 코스타리카 공화국 대통령 후보 출마를 선언했었다.

그의 선거운동의 일환으로, 차베스가 이끄는 사회민주진보당은 부정행위를 보고하지 않는 사람들을 처벌함으로써 부패와 싸우려 했다. 차베스는 정부와 언론, 대학과 시민 사이의 투명성에 찬성하며 공공기관의 활동을 매일 보고함으로써 이를 육성할 계획이라고 밝혔다. 실업에 관한 그의 계획은 더 많은 여성들이 노동에 참여하도록 장려하고 증가하는 수요에 대응하여 STEM 졸업생들의 수를 늘리는 것을 포함했다. 그는 또한 2개 국어 교육을 지원했고 코스타리카에 대한 외국 기업들을 환영하겠다고 약속했다. 선거운동을 마무리하기 위해 그는 생활비를 낮추기 위한 5단계 계획을 제안했다. 5단계 계획에는 기본 식품과 생활용품에서 세금을 없애고, 쌀 가격, 전기 가격을 낮추고, 독점권을 없애고, 농부들이 보다 효율적인 농약을 수입할 수 있도록 지원하는 것이 포함되었다. 그는 또한 의무적인 COVID-19 백신 접종을 지지하지 않는다고 말했다.

2월 6일, 로드리고 차베스는 4월 3일 치러지는 두 번째 선거에서 PLN당의 호세 마리아 피게레스 올센 전 대통령과 맞붙을 것이라고 발표되었다. 두 번째 라운드의 여러 여론조사에서 Chaves는 수치보다 앞서 1위를 차지했다.4월 3일, 차베스가 피게레스를 상대로 한 승리가 현지 언론에 의해 발표되었다. 차베스는 2022년 5월 8일, 취임하였다.

각주 

1961년 출생
살아있는 사람
오하이오 주립 대학교 동문
코스타리카의 대통령