| Pococí | |
| Native Name Lang: | es |
| Settlement Type: | Canton |
| Pushpin Map: | Costa Rica |
| Pushpin Map Alt: | Pococí canton location in Costa Rica |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Pococí canton location in Costa Rica |
| Coordinates: | 10.5009°N -83.6446°W |
| Map Alt: | Pococí canton |
| Established Title: | Creation |
| Established Date: | 19 September 1911 |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Name1: | Limón |
| Seat Type: | Head city |
| Seat: | Guápiles |
| Government Type: | Municipality |
| Governing Body: | Spanish; Castilian: Municipalidad de Pococí |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | Manuel Hernández Rivera (UP) |
| Parts Type: | Districts |
| Parts Style: | list |
| Parts: | Districts |
| P1: | Guápiles |
| P2: | Jiménez |
| P3: | La Rita |
| P4: | Roxana |
| P5: | Cariari |
| P6: | Colorado |
| P7: | La Colonia |
| Area Total Km2: | 2188.25 |
| Elevation M: | 134 |
| Population Total: | 125962 |
| Population As Of: | 2011 |
| Population Est: | 146320 |
| Pop Est As Of: | 2022 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Blank Name: | Canton code |
| Blank Info: | 702 |
Pococí is a canton in the Limón province of Costa Rica.[1] [2] The head city is in Guápiles district, which houses many of the canton's services and businesses.
Pococí was created on 19 September 1911 by decree 12.[3]
Pococí has an area of [4] and a mean elevation of .[1]
The canton takes in the Caribbean coast from the Toro River northward to the border with Nicaragua. It ranges inland in a southwestern direction with the Chirripó River forming the western border. The canton ends in the Cordillera Central where the Sucio River crosses the National Route 32 in Braulio Carrillo National Park.
According to Costa Rica's Municipal Code, mayors are elected every four years by the population of the canton.[5] As of the latest municipal elections in 2024, the United We Can candidate, Manuel Hernández Rivera, was elected mayor of the canton with 54.22% of the votes, with Yamileth Hidalgo Arias as first vice mayor, without a second vice mayor.[6]
| 2002–2006 | Manuel Hernández Rivera | PUSC |
| 2006–2010 | Enrique Alfaro Vargas | PLN |
| 2010–2016 | Jorge Emilio Espinoza Vargas | |
| 2016–2020 | Elibeth Venegas Villalobos | |
| 2020–2024 | Manuel Hernández Rivera | PAREVA |
| 2024–2028 | UP |
Like the mayor and vice mayors, members of the Municipal Council (called Spanish; Castilian: regidores) are elected every four years. Pococí's Municipal Council has 9 seats for regidores and their substitutes, who can participate in meetings but not vote unless the owning regidor is absent.[5] The current president of the Municipal Council is the Social Christian Unity Party regidor, Juan Mauricio Mora Cruz, with National Liberation Party member, Eva Isabel Torres Marín, as vice president.[8] The Municipal Council's composition for the 2024–2028 period is as follows:
| Political parties in the Municipal Council of Pococí | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Political party | Regidores | |||||
| № | Owner | Substitute | ||||
| United We Can (UP) | 4 | Luis Ángel Méndez Araya | Gerardo Cubillo Gamboa[10] | |||
| Patricia Aguilar Araya | Virginia Hernández Rivera | |||||
| Walter Villagra Rodríguez | Fabián Sánchez Loría | |||||
| Carmen Sánchez Navarro | Yoseline Rocío Abarca Torres | |||||
| National Liberation Party (PLN) | 2 | Carlos Alberto Retana López | William Hernández Valverde | |||
| Eva Isabel Torres Marín(VP) | Sandra Umaña López | |||||
| Recovering Values Party (PAREVA) | 1 | Ricardo Villalobos Vargas | Robert Jiménez Araya | |||
| New Generation Party (PNG) | 1 | Jordan Chaves Chaves | Ovidio Vives Castro | |||
| Social Christian Unity Party (PUSC) | 1 | Juan Mauricio Mora Cruz(P) | Jeffry Rojas Serrano | |||
The canton of Pococí is subdivided into the following districts:
In 2022, Pococí had an estimated population of,[11] up from for the 2011 census.[12]
According to a publication by the United Nations Development Programme,[13] Pococí ranked as the 2nd highest canton in Limón regarding human development in 2022, with a score of 0.700, only behind Siquirres. However, it's the 27th lowest in the country.
The canton is covered by the following road routes:
The Caribbean coast of Pococí boasts extensive wetlands and several protected areas, including Tortuguero National Park and Barra del Colorado Wildlife Refuge. In the Braulio Carrillo area is located the first aerial tram in the world to travel through a rainforest, called Rainforest Adventures and recently added to National Geographic's top ten adventure trips.[14] Much of the northern portion of the canton is inundated year-round or seasonally, and inaccessible by road. The wetlands stretch inland the length of the canton. The coastal areas provide important sea turtle nesting habitat. These protected areas and wetlands are an important ecotourism destination.
