Interpeace’s Central American Youth Programme recently organized a workshop to discuss the programmes’ latest policy proposal with 25 Costa Rican government officials.

The proposal titled “Opening doors to peaceful coexistence and development of youth in Costa Rica: Action plan to prevent youth violence in Costa Rica 2012-2014” incorporates the results of extensive dialogue and consultation processes facilitated by Interpeace.

The purpose of the workshop was to share the policy proposal with government stakeholders and receive their feedback on the policy recommendations. The comments received from participants will be incorporated in the proposal to ensure the commitment of government officials to the document and create a sense of institutional ownership.

Isabel Aguilar, Interpeace’s Director of the Central American Youth Programme presented Interpeace’s work on youth violence prevention across the Central America region. She was joined by Konrad Solis and Daniel Matul, experts on youth violence prevention, who explained Interpeace’s approach and highlighted the main strategies for youth violence prevention proposed for Costa Rica.

Participants congratulated the Interpeace team and thanked them publicly for their work. The proposal was widely recognized as a useful and necessary tool. The great value of the proposal is mainly seen in the fact that the results are based on an inclusive participatory process.

Max Loría, the Costa Rican Deputy Minister for Justice and Peace, stated: "This has been an extensive and participatory process. It emphasizes the leadership and effective coordination of Interpeace and the Friedrich Ebert Foundation in Costa Rica. It also reflects the government's commitment to invest in youth violence prevention. Only a country without violence can achieve comprehensive development of its population."