ABSTRACT
Industries have been able to locate in rural areas by virtue of the availability of electricity. It is safe to say that rural electrification in the United States contributed substantially to the improvement of the quality of life in rural areas and to the efficiency of agricultural production. The economic means to finance electrification projects was created through the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 and potential users of electricity in rural areas worked diligently to organize cooperatives and contribute to construction costs to whatever extent possible. In addition to Costa Rica, only a few other Latin American nations have rural electrification networks. Studies of rural electrification in Costa Rica deal mainly with the construciton of generating and distribution projects and with economic feasibility. The availability of electric energy has meant labor saving electrical appliances could be used within the home alleviating burdens of the homemaker and permitting her to engage in other activities with the time thus saved.
