2. Could any examples of such situations be given?

3. What is the size of the population between 0 and 17 years of age in Costa Rica? How many boys and how many girls?

4. What percentage of the population?

2. What were the consequences of the exhaustion of the form of development of the 1980s in the Republic of Costa Rica?

3. How have adjustment measures been applied in Costa Rica? What effect have they had on educational and health policies?

2. How do these areas concert their action with regard to the steps to be taken on the basis of alternative diagnoses, analyses and proposals? Have there not been any problems of scarcity of resources, or of divergence between the letter and the spirit of the law, or between the spirit and the apparatus of the State, leading to bureaucratic problems and holding up change?

3. Who are the members of the Government Technical Commission, apart from the First Lady?

4. The implementation of the Convention has made it necessary to design a new methodology aimed at reaching the beneficiaries directly. Have the State and non-governmental organizations no experience of direct operations in this field? What part does such experience play in the follow-up to the Convention?

5. Has the Office for the Defence of Children only been concerned with harmonizing the legislation relating to minors, or has it engaged in other types of activity relating to the actual defence of Costa Rican minors?

6. Has the Committee on the Rights of the Child presided over by the First Lady a purely normative function, or does it propose specific priority measures for the benefit of children?

7. Are the activities set out in the National Plan of Action broken down by sectors, or have they been planned in an integrated manner?

8. What has been the impact of the training workshops and other activities? What is the significance of Limoncito in the Costa Rican context? Does training cover all strata of Costa Rican society?

9. What has been the impact of the publications that have been prepared? How has that impact been evaluated?

10. With regard to coordination with other institutions and non-governmental organizations, it is stated that there have been some difficulties regarding the approach to and performance of tasks and responsibilities; has this been due to the fact that the areas of activity have been established in such a way as to restrict the work of care and attention and to concentrate exclusively on risk or high-risk situations?

11. It is stated that there was an apparent separation between UNICEF and UNDP in 1992, with different approaches and objectives; what steps have been taken by the Government with regard to the tasks included in the Plan of Action, on the assumption that this is the basis on which the work and international cooperation are planned and priorities established?

2. Are the provisions governing minors' work applied fully?

3. What is the situation of minors in the street? They appear to be protected by the law, but the reality may be different.

4. What is the main cause of school drop-outs?

5. What does it mean to have drop-out rates of 2 per cent and 11 per cent from primary and secondary education? What is the overall school population and the matriculated population?

6. In accordance with the definition of the child in the Convention, what is the population between 0 and 18 years of age in Costa Rica? What percentage does it represent of the total population?

7. If the law is a dead letter with regard to the various controls over the exploitation of children or their introduction to gambling and harmful substances, what does the civil society do about it, through the institutions of which it is made up? Is it only repressive measures or a police presence that will ensure that the law is observed?

8. Following the definition of the child recommended by the National Children's Trust, what has been the reaction? What are the arguments put forward?

9. Under Costa Rican law, does not the ratification of the Convention bind the country in law and in fact?

2. Does not the fact that the curriculum policy regards "the pupil as the principal subject of education" restrict the educational function? The child is a subject of law. Is not the right to education being restricted in this case?

3. What weight do the criticisms of the Office for the Defence of Children carry in the deliberations of the State and the sectors affected, such as education, health, labour and security?

4. Could examples be given of the amendment and updating of the Family Code? 5. What are the models for intervention to protect these rights (to life, to survival and to development)? Could examples be given and information provided on their impact?

6. In what manner is respect ensured for the views and judgement of the child?

7. How is the Office for the Defence of Children organized and how is it represented in relation to the sectors involved in the implementation of the Convention?

8. Does the infant school system really cover the whole country? What results have been obtained? Could some of them be specified?

9. Since the institutions responsible for undertaking the implementation of the Convention are in a period of transition, how is it possible to speak of results in the various areas?

10. How is it proposed to undertake the review of concepts and ways of dealing with problems?

11. Will the priorities set forth also apply to the National Plan of Action for Human Development and to economic and social policies within a framework of structural adjustment? How will it be possible to avoid the contradiction which gives priority to the economic factor over social and human elements?

2. What is the significance of Constitutional Chamber No. IV, the Office for the Defence of Children, the Office for the Defence of Women and the Office of the Family Procurator within the structure of the Costa Rican State and in relation to the sectors involved in their operations?

3. What is the total school population? What is the number of boys and girls? What is the capacity of the 3,741 teaching centres? Is it possible to make a breakdown by grades? Is there any information on the urban and rural school populations?

4. In the health sector, has only information work been carried out? Have there not also been prevention campaigns?

5. Is there an estimate of the number of working children in Costa Rica? What activities are being undertaken in this area? What are the numbers of boys and girls in this category?

6. If there is such a high rate of road accidents involving pre-school children, what is being done about it?

7. Who belongs to the National Youth Movement? What are its objectives?

8. How is the National Youth Movement organized?

9. How is it proposed to harmonize the national legislation with the Convention?

2. Since educational policy does not guarantee that meetings will be held between parents and teachers, is there any education law embodying specific objectives relating to respect for the child and his environment?

3. How do parents participate in the growth and development examinations, in the nourishment and nutrition programmes and the programme for infant survival and the prevention of contagious diseases?

4. What relationship is there between the National Children's Trust and the national education system? How does the Parent Education Programme link up with the educational activities of the community? Or is it intended solely for rural areas?

6. What quantitative and qualitative results are being achieved with the programme of "Temporary Family Reception Hostels"?

7. Why has the case of children illicitly transferred abroad and not returned not yet been dealt with by the National Children's Trust?

8. The number of children abandoned between 1990 and the first half of 1992 was 15,604, but only 13 per cent have been dealt with; what has happened to the others?

9. Given that the intention is to avoid institutionalizing minors, it is necessary to state how many boys and girls are in custody and how many have been reintegrated into society?

10. How is the requirement of "periodic review of placement" being fulfilled, apart from the report to be submitted by the director of the establishment involved and the weekly visits by the judges?

11. Are the assessments of institutions by the State carried out in accordance with the provisions of the law?

12. Are the options put forward for future action part of a national project for the care of minors, or simply a response to the immediate situation?

2. What expectations have been aroused by the new Minors' Code? What has been the response of civil society and its institutions?

3. How do the various amendments being proposed in the Costa Rican legislature conform with the requirements of the Convention?

4. Are the measures being taken in the health sector for the benefit of children the most appropriate ones and those that deserve priority?

5. The programmes sponsored by non-governmental organizations are having the required impact. If this is so, what is the approach to the formulation of preventive policies?

6. What results are being obtained with the policy of de-institutionalizing minors?

7. How many children are cared for in "little homes" and what percentage do they represent of the country's population?

8. Are there other hostels outside the capital? How many?

9. How are infant mortality, malnutrition, contagious diseases, etc. dealt with in State policy?

10. What priorities have been established with respect to basic health and family welfare?

2. What is the percentage of school failure (drop-out, non-matriculation, repeating)?

3. Is there free education in Costa Rica?

4. With regard to the new education proposal supported by international development agencies, has a new system of education been formulated for Costa Rica? How has the new proposal been received?

5. How does the educational subsidy operate? Does it mean that education is not free for all the pupils? What are the criteria for granting the subsidy?

6. Does the school voucher mean that education is not free? What are the criteria for granting the voucher?

7. Who finances the various scholarships awarded? Do these programmes exist in the capital only, or do they cover the whole country? What evaluation can be made of them?

8. What evaluation can be made with respect to article 29 on the "objectives of education"?

9. How is the application of the Convention reflected in school programmes?

10. It is not quite clear what is implied by the "right to rest, leisure and cultural activities", which the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport is responsible for promoting. What areas of activity are involved?

11. What is the distinction between education, recreation and sport? What does voluntary work by young persons consist of?

12. What sorts of bodies are the Foundations? Where do their funds come from? How big is the education budget, compared with the budgets of other social sectors?

13. What basic ideas will apply in the implementation of the priorities for achievement of the objectives? Do the areas envisaged imply a review not only of the procedures but also of the content?

14. In what manner is it planned to strengthen the development of compensatory social programmes to guarantee basic education?

15. What percentage of children suffer from special limitations? What policies does the State have to deal with this specific problem?

16. What is the machinery through which the family is integrated into the process of State-supervised education for children?

2. What are the main programmes for taking care of these refugees, and in particular their children? Where are they?

3. What sort of problem is there with the identity of refugee children? What are the main factors involved and how are they being dealt with?

4. What part can refugee women play in dealing with the problems that confront them?

5. How is the quality of life of these children measured?

6. Do refugee children get the same treatment as children living in extreme poverty?

7. Bearing in mind the existence of the Office for the Defence of Children, what is the approach of the State to the role of institutions called upon to promote this objective?

8. What are the main difficulties encountered by the Office for the Defence of Children? How are they dealt with? What are the prospects?

9. Objectively, is the treatment and care of young persons in conflict with the law a matter for the State? How is this question being approached? What are the prospects for future policy on this issue?

10. Are there sufficient human resources (professional and auxiliary) available to the State? How is the question of pay dealt with? Is there a genuine awareness regarding the function and professionalization of such resources?

11. Is sex education a part of the education programmes? What are the main problems which have been detected? Who gives this education?

12. Are training activities and the preparation of material on the prevention of sexual abuse carried out at the national level? Who is responsible for follow-up of these activities?

13. Have the modules designed been validated first? What results are being obtained?

14. How do private institutions participate in this prevention programme?

15. Is experience with the programmes and modules being used in the formulation of education and health policies?

16. What population is covered by the Prevention of Child Abuse Programme? What results have been forthcoming since the introduction of that programme? How is the State transferring this programme to the community?

17. What is the approach to education and prevention of illness for working children? What is the policy of the State on this problem? How many working children are there at present in Costa Rica?

18. How do non-governmental organizations participate in the implementation of these programmes?

19. What evaluation could be made of the programmes for working children?

20. What are the main difficulties hindering these programmes for the protection of children? What is the role of the State and of private institutions?

21. Have the priorities been established on the basis of a diagnosis or of general observations? How is continuity of achievement ensured in the face of political change?

2. At the level of the State, there is abundant legislation, but some dispersal of effort is apparent, as well as a lack of consistency with regard to the objectives, policies and strategies to be followed.

3. One gets the impression that there are a number of non-governmental organizations and benevolent institutions carrying out a series of interesting projects, but that no advantage is being taken of their experience in the formulation of policies for work concerning children.

4. While financial resources for education and health are provided by the State, there is also an unknown amount that comes from non-governmental organizations through development agencies which "invest" in work with children but from the angle of assistance. Thus the continued existence of the programmes cannot be said to be guaranteed.

5. Training, instruments and texts are all of them somewhat dispersed. A more systematic approach is recommended in order to assemble these elements for their dissemination.