Presently Costa Rica hosts about 12’500 refugees of which a majority are Colombians fleeing their country’s internal conflict. The RET started its activities in Costa Rica in August 2010, in the Province of Heredia, with the objective of reducing inequalities through a strategy of integral development for vulnerable adolescents and youths adapted to their contexts and problems. Generally speaking, the RET’s projects seek to: guarantee access to the educational system, avoid school drop-outs, generate employment opportunities, support income generation activities, promote the productive use of free time through sports and cultural activities, prevent violence and provide psycho-social support to young people at social risk. The significance of these needs has lead the RET to implement new projects and expand its geographical presence from Heredia to Alajuela and San José. In the future the RET foresees carrying-out projects outside of the Grand Metropolitan Area.

Presently the RET implements 4 projects in the country:

The Project on emergency assistance and social, economic and educational integration of refugee populations, is funded by the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration of the United States’ Department of State. Its aim is to provide psychosocial support to refugees and refuge seekers in order to reduce their vulnerability.

The Centre for Pedagogical Orientation (CPO) in Belen, Heredia is financed by the Swiss Embassy. The CPO is a computer workroom where adolescents and youths have free access to educational and technological tools with the guidance of a professional, specialised in working with adolescents and youths, who familiarises them with the use of the tools and organises activities such as workshops, movie forums and recreational events.

The Programme for integral social development of the Community of Guarari is funded by the Creating Opportunities Foundation. This programme is based on three main components: education (prevention of school absenteeism and drop-out), access to the labour market (creation of opportunities) and psycho-social support (positive psycho-social development).

The Promoting inclusive education and local integration of urban refugee youth through sporting, recreational, and awareness raising activities project is supported by the International Olympic Committee. It is implemented in San Jose in collaboration with the network “Youth without Frontiers”. The project’s objective is to integrate young refugees and refuge seekers in local communities through sports, recreational and awareness raising activities