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1. Adoption and application of an active employment policy within the framework of a coordinated economic and social policy. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in its report for the period ending May 2005. The Government provided a copy of the document entitled “Employment policy for Costa Rica”, published in March 2004, for which it received technical advice from the ILO. The publication was the outcome of tripartite consultations held in the framework of the Higher Labour Council and emphasizes there has not been an explicit employment policy in Costa Rica, as an integrated part of development policy, with the objective of promoting upward social mobility, achieving a better distribution of income and reducing poverty. The components of an employment policy should include: the creation of an employment information, guidance and placement system and a national technical training system; the restructuring of labour migration; the improvement of production by micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises, cooperatives and the social economy sector; the promotion of areas with relatively low levels of development and the protection of groups requiring special attention; and the establishment of a mechanism for planning, monitoring, assessment and evaluation so that the employment policy becomes a state policy. The Committee considers it essential from the outset for employment objectives to be included “as a major goal” in the formulation of economic and social policy if these objectives are truly to be an integral part of the policies that are adopted (2004 General Survey on promoting employment, paragraph 490). The Committee hopes that the Government’s next report will include information enabling it to assess the progress achieved in the adoption of an active employment policy, with the participation of the social partners, with a view to achieving the employment creation objectives set out in the Convention (Articles 1, 2 and 3 of the Convention). In this respect, it requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved in terms of employment creation by the “Strategic Employment Generation, Production and Investment Programme”, particularly in the peripheral regions of the country. The Government is also requested to provide detailed information on the measures adopted in the framework of the national employment policy.

2. The information provided by the Government shows that the unemployment rate of 6.5 per cent (in 2004) was slightly lower than that of 2003 (6.7 per cent). The numbers of the unemployed fell and the labour force increased slightly. In 2004, a total of 13,492 new jobs were created. The Government indicates that if greater numbers of young persons of an age to be potentially active had opted to enter the labour market, the unemployment figures would have been discouraging. The Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information in its next report on the situation, level and trends of employment, unemployment and underemployment, with an indication of the manner in which they affect the most vulnerable categories (women, young workers, older workers, rural workers and workers in the informal economy). The Committee requests information on the contribution of export processing zones to the creation of lasting high-quality employment.

3. The Committee notes the information provided on the initiatives adopted by the Ministry of Public Education and the action taken by the National Training Institute (INA). The Committee would be grateful if the Government would continue to refer in its next report to matters relating to the coordination of education and vocational training policies with employment policy, which is indispensable if every worker is to enjoy full opportunities to acquire the necessary training with a view to obtaining suitable employment and using their training and skills in such employment. In this respect, the Government may wish to refer to the guidance contained in Recommendation No. 195, adopted by the International Labour Conference at its 92nd Session (June 2004), and the provisions of the Human Resources Development Convention, 1975 (No. 142).

4. ILO technical cooperation. The Committee notes the Tripartite Declaration on the promotion of employment and decent work in Central America and the Dominican Republic, concluded by the Ministers of Labour and representatives of employers’ and workers’ organizations in Tegucigalpa in June 2005. In the Tripartite Declaration, among other significant policies, it was agreed to place the objective of creating worthwhile, sustainable and high-quality jobs, in accordance with ILO parameters, at the centre of macroeconomic policy, with efforts being focused not only on controlling inflation and the fiscal deficit, but also, with equal priority, on the promotion of investment and equitable growth. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information in its next report on the initiatives that have been taken with ILO support to promote, at both the national and subregional levels, the objective of the creation of productive employment as set out in the Convention (Part V of the report form).