1. Right to work and to just and favourable conditions of work
78. The National Employment Programme provides for employment-generating activities such as the construction of infrastructure, job skills training and grants for productive ideas. The “Get a Job” (Empléate) programme offers labour market insertion support for young persons aged between 17 and 24 years old who are unemployed and socially vulnerable, and has so far helped a total of 7,944 young people. The Directorate for a Solidarity-Based Socioeconomic System contributed to 89 projects in 2017 and provided assistance to a total of 75 organizations. In the same period, the National Support Programme for Micro and Small Enterprises funded a total of 1,014 microloans for poor families and individuals.67
79. Including the refugee population in Costa Rica’s economic development is one of the strategic objectives set under the National Development Plan 2014–2018. To achieve this goal, the State organizes structured technical support activities to help refugees to escape poverty.68
80. In addition, the Plan of Action implementing State policy for gender equality and gender equity provides for the introduction of an insurance scheme for domestic workers as a means to protect workers in this sector, including migrant women.
81. Similarly, the regulations on refugee affairs provide that the General Directorate for Migration may grant authorization to enter waged employment or work on a self-employed basis to persons seeking refugee status, who are given a period of three months to regularize their status.69 In addition, the General Directorate for Migration has launched a programme entitled “Live integration” (Vivir la Integración) to promote the integration of refugees.70
82. The Labour Law Reform Act was also a very important advance, since, by introducing the principle of orality, it will serve to streamline legal proceedings and reduce the backlog of cases. The new Act also increases protection for workers engaged in trade union activities, pregnant women, adolescents, persons affected by discrimination and persons who report cases of sexual harassment, among others. In addition, it will guarantee access to justice by making free legal assistance available to workers earning less than the lowest minimum wage.
2. Right to social security and to an adequate standard of living
83. The National Policy for Wastewater Management 2016–2045 is the fruit of an inter-agency effort to rethink notions of what constitutes safe wastewater management and also part of the drive to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. The Policy is designed to ensure that individual or collective wastewater treatment systems do not harm the environment while at the same time continuing national efforts to address the issues identified as priorities in the analysis of the sanitation system in Costa Rica.71
84. Act No. 9590, authorizing the use of water for human consumption and the construction of the related infrastructure in areas forming part of the State’s natural heritage, was designed to reinforce the existing laws that guarantee access to water. The Act regulates the methods used by public service providers and establishes requirements for the use of surface water sources and for the construction, operation and improvement of water supply systems. Although it proved impossible to adopt a law expressly based on the right to water, there is a clear and comprehensive policy framework that recognizes the fundamental right to life, which is linked to health and, thus, by extension, to access to drinking water.72
85. To guarantee that the births of all indigenous and migrant children are registered, the Integration and Development Division of the General Directorate for Migration runs mobile migration units in conjunction with officials of the Supreme Electoral Court in order to promote the registration of newborn girls and boys, to inform parents about the procedure to be followed and to make the actual registrations. In partnership with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Division runs the “Chiriquitos”
programme, designed to facilitate the formalities necessary for late birth registration in indigenous communities and, subsequently, for the issuance of documentation.73
86. As the lead agency for public programmes and policies designed to combat poverty and improve quality of life, the Inter-Agency Institute for Social Assistance coordinates projects that cater for the needs of persons, families, groups and communities meriting priority attention and help to improve the conditions in which they live.
87. The Multidimensional Poverty Index is one of the key tools used to measure poverty levels. In addition to measuring poverty based on income insufficiency and the poverty line, the Index tracks poverty levels in the country as a whole, so providing a measure of the effects of social policy. Use of the Multidimensional Poverty Index allows the Government to develop comprehensive, targeted policies based on expert information and to identify the challenges the country faces in combating and reducing poverty and extreme poverty.
88. Of particular importance in the fight against poverty is the National Strategy for Poverty Reduction 2015–2018, also known as the “Bridge to Development” strategy. The main objective of this strategy, as set out in Executive Decree No. 38954, is to tackle family poverty using a cross-sectoral and cross-agency approach and to reduce extreme poverty by
guaranteeing access to a comprehensive range of sustainable and coordinated inter-agency programmes and services.74
89. The methodology espoused under the “Bridge to Development” strategy tackles employment and income problems by providing support for families and building a sense of shared responsibility between them and the relevant agencies. The aim is to create, through joint efforts, the conditions necessary for engagement in productive processes or employment. The inter-agency coordination necessary to the success of this component of the strategy has been achieved thanks to the leadership of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security and by using public-private partnerships for activities in the field.75
90. The “Bridge to Development” strategy also tackles social protection issues, health, family dynamics, education and training, housing, work and income. The range of services was designed to give families access to upward mobility and the wherewithal to attain, through their own efforts and building on small achievements, the economic independence that enables them to improve their quality of life.76
91. It is important to emphasize that, because the Sustainable Development Goals are incorporated in the National Development and Public Investment Plan, poverty eradication programmes and projects are given priority. The Ministry of National Planning and Economic Policy has also included the indicators of the Sustainable Development Goals in the National Development and Public Investment Plan. The aim is to ensure fulfilment of the corresponding national targets, the ultimate goal of which is to eradicate poverty and guarantee inclusive sustainable development.
92. With regard to access to health, the guiding principles and main focuses of the National Health Plan 2016–2020 are equity, timeliness and quality in health care, reducing service gaps, social cohesion and system sustainability. This Plan, together with the related health policy for the period 2014–2018, establishes that the State has a responsibility to guarantee the right of access to a quality health-care system.
93. Cancer has become a public-health problem at the national level. Cervical cancer remains one of the main causes of premature death among women in Costa Rica. However, the incidence of cervical cancer was 1.85 times lower in 2011 than in 2000 and the related mortality rate was 1.58 times lower in 2013 than in 2000. According to data for 2014, there were 29.3 cases of cervical cancer per 100,000 women, resulting in 5.42 deaths per 100,000 women. The mortality rate changed little between 2002 and 2015, with an average annual decline of 0.2 per cent. For these reasons, on 14 June 2018, the Government approved plans to include the human papillomavirus vaccine (HPV) in the national vaccination programme and instructed the Costa Rican Social Insurance Fund to carry out the required formalities and the outreach campaigns necessary to make the general public aware of the benefits of HPV vaccination for girls from the age of 10 years onwards. The Social Insurance Fund’s vaccination programme is scheduled to start in May or June 2019.
94. The Costa Rican Social Security’s Fund budget for 2018 included provision for implementation of the single electronic health record system. The new system should advance progress towards universal access to quality medical services and will provide patients with an electronic record of their full medical history.77 It is important to note that electronic health records are considered legal documents and that the new system’s adoption therefore entailed a complete overhaul of traditional hospital systems.78
95. The main programme for reducing HIV prevalence and improving access to quality treatment is the National Strategic Plan on HIV and AIDS 2016–2021. The Plan defines the main lines of action to be used in the fight against HIV and provides an analysis of the context, the legal framework and the possible national responses for ensuring compliance with international agreements.79
3. Right to education and to participate in the cultural life of the community
96. To ensure access to quality education, the National Development and Public Investment Plan sets out the current figures, the challenges and the strategies that foster the development of the personal skills necessary for harmonious coexistence in society and integration in the labour market.80 The Plan identifies key challenges in this area, such as
reducing student exclusion in upper secondary and diversified education, improving the skills of students in areas in which they have fallen behind (which might be reading or mathematics), reducing the percentage of young people between the ages of 15 and 24 who neither work nor study and increasing access to higher education for persons in situations of socioeconomic vulnerability.
97. Taking a holistic approach to education, technical and vocational educational centres also have plans to purchase specialized equipment for the agricultural, industrial, commercial and service sectors through which to provide education tailored to the needs of the labour market. This includes developing multilingual skills in both students and teachers.81
98. Human rights education is included in study programmes, particularly in the civic education programme. The topics covered include the right to a violence-free environment, the right to life and physical integrity, the right to an environment free from natural hazards, the right to recognition of the human person as an individual with a personal and social identity, the right to recognition of the human person as an individual with a gender identity, the right to equity and equality, the right to cultural diversity, and the right to democracy and political participation, including respect for the law and standards.82
99. The authorities are also working to reduce school dropout rates through social programmes such as “Let’s move forward” (Avancemos), which gives secondary school-age students the opportunity to enter and remain in formal education by providing conditional cash transfers that supplement family income in order to cover the costs associated with education. The programme also provides school kits for children from poor or extremely poor families who are enrolled in primary education to help them to remain in the formal education system.83