Costa Rica
Strategies for youth employment
- Strategies for youth employment
- Yes
Youth employment strategy planned in the next 2 years
- Discussions within the government
- Yes
- Consultations with national-level stakeholders (e.g. employers’ and workers’ associations, youth councils, etc.)
- Yes
- A draft strategy already exists
- Yes
- Other (please specify)
- Yes
Countries with national action plans for youth employment
- Monitoring framework (timeline and activity/outcome indicators, e.g. youth labour market indicators)
- Yes
- Funding (indicative budget to implement the plan)
- Yes
- Institutional responsibilities (e.g. ministries/agencies in charge of specific planned activities )
- Yes
- Other, specify
- No
Public funding for the national youth employment strategy
- Public funding for the national youth employment strategy
- Yes
Additional information:
The policies, plans, programmes and projects have the operational funding of each institution for the fulfilment of the different actions.Youth in the national development / employment strategy
- Youth in the national development / employment strategy
- Yes
Additional information:
Costa Rica’s National Employment Directorate, in collaboration with the International Labour Organization (ILO), is integrating gender perspectives, youth issues, and social inclusion into the National Employment Policy. As part of this process, a specialised consultancy is carrying out a comprehensive diagnosis that addresses key areas such as: • Gaps in access to and retention in the labour market; • Labour underutilisation, including inactivity and youth who are neither studying nor working (NEET); • Time use, unpaid work, and the care economy; • Labour poverty and inequality dynamics within and between social groups; • Coverage and adequacy of social protection, among other factors. According to the work plan, the policy is currently in the diagnostic phase, during which these priority topics are being consolidated.Countries with national goals for youth employment
- Countries with national goals for youth employment
- Yes
Additional information:
In Costa Rica, the National Development and Public Investment Plan (PNDIP) 2023–2026 sets out targets to promote youth employment. Costa Rica’s National Strategy for Employability and Human Talent (BRETE) aims to improve employability for at least 44,000 people annually through the National Employment System’s services. The strategy prioritises support for populations facing the greatest barriers to labour market inclusion, including: • Women (targeting at least 50% of beneficiaries); • Young people aged 15 to 24 (at least 40%); • People living in poverty and extreme poverty (at least 25%); • People with disabilities (at least 15%). Its second component focuses on directing investments and services towards those actively seeking employment but facing exclusion from the labour market, such as young people, women, individuals with low qualifications, migrants, and others, following prioritisation mechanisms established by the National Employment System.Countries with quantitative targets for youth employment
- Countries with quantitative targets for youth employment
- Yes
Additional information:
There are quantitative targets set at the national level within the Government’s roadmap as part of the National Development and Public Investment Plan (PNDIP) 2023–2026. These include specific objectives aimed at improving youth employment outcomes.Policy areas in national youth employment strategies
- Macroeconomic and Sectoral policies
- No
- Enterprise Development
- Yes
- Education, Training and skills development
- Yes
- Labour Demand
- No
- Labour Law and Legislation
- Yes
- Labour Market Policies
- No
- Other (please specify)
- No
Social partners' inclusion in the youth employment strategy
- Workers
- Implementation of youth employment strategies/programmes (e.g. social partners as official implementers of the strategy or programme)
- No
- Assessment of youth employability (alignment of youth qualifications and skills to labour market needs)
- No
- Monitoring and evaluation of youth employment interventions (e.g. active labour market programmes)
- No
- Awareness raising, marketing and promotion of youth employment (e.g. campaign to promote youth employment)
- No
- Formulation of youth employment strategies (e.g. national action plan for youth)
- Fully involved
- Development of youth employment programmes (e.g. sectoral programme with a clear target to employ X number of youth)
- Fully involved
- Employers
- Implementation of youth employment strategies/programmes (e.g. social partners as official implementers of the strategy or programme)
- No
- Assessment of youth employability (alignment of youth qualifications and skills to labour market needs)
- No
- Monitoring and evaluation of youth employment interventions (e.g. active labour market programmes)
- No
- Awareness raising, marketing and promotion of youth employment (e.g. campaign to promote youth employment)
- No
- Formulation of youth employment strategies (e.g. national action plan for youth)
- Fully involved
- Development of youth employment programmes (e.g. sectoral programme with a clear target to employ X number of youth)
- Fully involved
Youth-led organizatios' inclusion in the national strategy
- Fully involved
- Yes
- Partially involved (only for some elements of the strategy)
- No
- Consulted
- No
- Informed
- No
- Not involved
- No
Countries with national partnerships for youth employment
- Countries with national partnerships for youth employment
- Yes
Additional information:
2025: A governance system involving different institutions has been promoted to address their problems, including employment issues, creation of employment units, training courses, conditional cash transfers, dual education and others. 2024: A system of governance has been promoted that involves different institutions to address their issues, including employment issues. __________ Reference has been made to the Dual Education and Training law (No. 9728), which considers private-public partnerships for education.Inclusiveness of vulnerable groups in national strategies
- Women
- Yes
- Migrant Workers
- Yes
- NEETs
- Yes
- People with disabilities
- Yes
- Low skilled workers
- Yes
- Rural workers
- Yes
- Other (please specify)
- No
Youth employment strategies and international cooperation
- Youth employment strategies and international cooperation
- Yes
Additional information:
2025: Technical assistance from the Subregional Office for Central America, Haiti, Panama and the Dominican Republic of the International Labour Organisation. 2024: Technical assistance from the Subregional Office for Central America, Haiti, Panama and the Dominican Republic of the International Labour Organisation. _______ ILO with technical support to generate the strategy.