Costa Rica’s recently completed National Police School, which will open in October, has the capacity for housing 810 police officers, said the Ministry of Public Security.

The campus consists of 29 buildings that make up the police training complex in La Rita de Pococí in the province of Limón.

The infrastructure is estimated to have cost 12 billion colones, of which 9 billion were donated by the People’s Republic of China.

The campus includes dormitory towers, a dining room, a gym, and football and basketball court, in addition to classrooms, libraries and training areas for future officers.

Chinese Ambassador to Costa Rica Tang Heng was in attendance at the recent ribbon cutting ceremony as was Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solis.

Heng noted that the project took 32 months to complete, and was aided by the presence of Chinese workers.

Costa Rican Security Minister Gustavo Mata thanked the Government of China, and said that the facilities will be used to also train international police. He also thanked the Asian nation for the donation of two aircraft to be used for national security.

The National Police School will train officers of the regular police force as well as those in the following units: air surveillance, drug control, traffic police, penitentiary police, and agents of the Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ, as it is known in Costa Rica).

The new complex will be staffed by 60 police officers and 75 administrators, said the ministry.