Complementary currency based on blockchain technology in Indigenous Territory, Costa Rica

Abstract

In Costa Rica, there is a notable disparity in socio-economic development across different regions. Indigenous communities exhibit some of the lowest Social Development indices in the country, placing them in the group known as the Area of Lower Relative Development, with a very low level. Despite progress in projects aimed at strengthening these communities through local socio-productive initiatives, numerous limitations persist, such as access to goods not produced locally, the need to overcome subsistent economies, difficulties in interacting with other socio-economic actors, and access to basic services. In this context, the project Strategies for Territorial Socioeconomic Development through the Use of Complementary Currencies Based on Blockchain Technology aims to analyze the feasibility of implementing a blockchain-based complementary currency in indigenous territories as a territorial development strategy. To this end, a mixed-methods approach was employed, allowing for the examination of previous experiences with complementary currencies in socio-economically vulnerable contexts, the assessment of local resources and capacities, the analysis of the existing ecosystem, and the design of the complementary currency.