Revista Centroamericana de Administración Pública

Editorial

2025-11-18

Enabling, flexible, and forward-looking regulation for a just and sustainable energy transition

Juan Carlos Martínez Piva — 2025-11-18

The transformation of the energy sector requires regulatory frameworks that not only keep pace with technological advances, but also anticipate socioeconomic, technological and environmental changes to promote and guide them. This article is based on contemporary theoretical frameworks, an assessment of international experiences, documentary review and a critical-constructive analysis aimed at identifying the requirements of regulation that is prepared to adapt to changing contexts while upholding its public value.

Smart Grids for the Energy Transition in Latin America and the Caribbean: Progress, Gaps, and the Outlook in Costa Rica

Daniel Fallas Mora — 2025-11-18

Digitalization and smart grids are key pillars in the global energy transition toward more sustainable, efficient, and decentralized systems. These rely on technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), advanced analytics, and blockchain to optimize energy management, distribution, and consumption. In Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), the implementation of these technologies faces major challenges, including outdated electrical infrastructure, low interoperability, limited investment in storage, and cybersecurity risks. Regulatory barriers also persist, such as the absence of clear frameworks, outdated tariff schemes, and institutional resistance to change.

The communitarian dimension in the just energy transition

Ana María Ramírez-Tovar — 2025-11-18

This article, developed from the work of the character and in Latin America, argues that a just energy transition must be grounded in three essential pillars: strengthening the social fabric in the face of state neglect, understanding energy as a limited resource beyond its commodified character, and overcoming paternalism along with structural poverty traps. Building on this framework, the paper highlights the relevance of energy communities as a strategy to operationalize these pillars by fostering territorial sovereignty, self-management, and democratic participation in energy governance.

Public policy in Costa Rica’s energy sector and citizen participation

Rodolfo Romero Redondo — 2025-11-18

This article analyzes public policy in Costa Rica’s energy sector, focusing on citizen participation in its design and implementation. Theoretical frameworks are considered, emphasizing that a public policy of this nature must emerge from contextual analysis and actively involve all stakeholders who are affected or benefited. A social network analysis (SNA) reveals that institutions such as MINAE, ARESEP, and energy distribution companies play a central role in decision-making, while citizen participation remains very limited.

Is fossil-fuel-free Latin America and the Caribbean possible?

Gabriela Contreras Cordero — 2025-11-18

This article analyzes the relevance of the energy transition in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) in the context of the international commitments made by the region’s countries to mitigate the effects of climate change. The discussion focuses on the challenges posed by reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in a scenario where the use of fossil fuels still predominates. This article examines the position of Latin America and the Caribbean in a global context that is moving, at varying speeds and levels of commitment, toward a reduction and even gradual elimination of the use of fossil fuels.

Analysis of governance in the Costa Rican energy sector, emphasizing regulation

Roberto Jiménez Gómez — 2025-11-19

This article analyzes the governance of the energy sector in Costa Rica through a review of the processes involved in the formulation of public policies by the governing entity, the implementation of these policies, their validation by the regulatory authority, the execution by sector organizations, and the subsequent adjustments. It examines the application of best practices, based on the author’s experience, across various national instances of the energy sector and the applied studies conducted for Costa Rica by organizations such as the OECD, identifying areas for improvement.

Biodiesel production and marketing: a development alternative for the palm oil sector in Costa Rica

Alexander Sánchez Sánchez — 2025-11-19

A high percentage of the income earned by the Costa Rican palm oil sector comes from the production and marketing of crude palm oil, for which the industry has used nearly 85% of all palm fruit produced in the country. Crude oil is sold on the international market as a commodity, and between 2011 and 2020, its price declined steadily, affecting the entire palm oil sector and, consequently, the economic development of oil palm-producing regions.

Public Policy Instruments for Productive Forests in Central America: An Exploratory Analysis Based on a Mapping of Public Policy Instruments for Natural Resources, 1994-2016

Alonso Villalobos Jiménez — 2025-11-20

Productive and conservation forests are crucial for rural populations in Central America, given their socioeconomic and environmental roles. This importance has led to the creation of national public policies. This study maps public policy instruments related to natural resources between 1994 and 2016 to determine the significance of the productive forest sector, its transformations during this period, and to identify the most common types of instruments compared to other resource sectors.