Costa Rica: Conditional transfers for secondary education

In crisis situations like the present, many people might feel driven to join the job market in order to obtain an income. This reaction is understandable; however, it could lead to worse circumstances in the medium or long term. The foregoing is the particular case of young people who drop out of formal schooling to look for employment. For the most part, young people who have not completed their schooling will have a hard time fi nding even a precarious job. As they are hardly likely to return to school, starting to work at an early age will only jeopardize their working life and harden the vicious circle of poverty. The purpose of the Avancemos Programme is to encourage young people from poor homes to stay in formal schooling until they have completed the secondary cycle. Although the Programme was designed and started before the crisis, it not only adequately responds to present needs, but also provides a long-term strategy to improve workforce quality.