经济、社会和文化权利委员会审议哥斯达黎加的报告（部分翻译）

经济、社会和文化权利委员会

2016年9月20日

经济、社会和文化权利委员会今天结束审议哥斯达黎加关于落实《经济、社会及文化权利国际公约》条款情况的第五次定期报告。

外交部副部长亚历杭德罗·索拉诺-欧提兹（Alejandro Solano-Ortiz）呈报了报告，并指出，哥斯达黎加政府正在落实重要政策，打击贫困和日益增长的不平等。国家减贫战略已经通过，政府致力于可持续发展目标，已经在2016年9月通过了旨在实现目标的全国契约。哥斯达黎加已批准所有关于消除对弱势群体的歧视和人权保护的国际和区域文书，该国在大量人类发展指标上表现良好。政府正特别注意促进平等并确保土著人民与边缘社区行使权利。

在随后的互动对话期间，专家们希望了解关于社会政策的机构框架、《公约》在国家法律秩序中的运用、所提供教育的质量、住房状况与迫迁问题以及流产法限制性的本质。委员会尤其感兴趣了解反歧视机制、妇女权利、边缘化群体、土著人民和移民。劳动市场的状况和劳动权利也得到了充分的探究，特别是在非正规经济部门的人员状况、家庭佣工、保险系统以及养老金系统。贫困率和不平等现象增加的问题也是对话中反复出现的议题。

在总结发言中，索拉诺-欧提兹先生表示，与条约机构的对话帮助该国通过评估国家机构框架与执行能力的优势与弱点，从而在承担责任的同时取得进步。结论性建议将在民间社会中广为传播，政府将尽最大努力迅速回应所有建议，由此继续履行条约机构的建议。

委员会主席瓦利德·萨迪（Waleed Sadi）称赞了哥斯达黎加政府在落实国际人权义务方面的优良工作。对话很有建设性，并澄清了许多重要问题。

哥斯达黎加代表团包括来自外交部、国民大会和哥斯达黎加常驻联合国日内瓦办事处的代表。

委员会将在今天下午3点继续公开会议，讨论塞浦路斯的第六次定期报告(E/C.12/CYP/6).

 
报告

哥斯达黎加的第五份报告可在这里阅读。


Presentation of the Report
 
ALEJANDRO SOLANO-ORTIZ, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, stated that Costa Rica had been the first country to sign the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in 1968.  He further affirmed commitment of the country to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, emphasizing that Costa Rica had been the first country to create a national pact for the fulfillment of the Goals in September 2016.  Article 1 of the Constitution had been reformed in August 2015 to incorporate the multicultural and multiethnic character of the country, promoting the doctrine of embracing diversity.  In September 2010, the country had ratified the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Costa Rica had also been the first country to sign the Inter-American Convention for the Prevention and Elimination of Racism, Racial Discrimination, and All Forms of Discrimination and Intolerance, as well as the Inter-American Convention on Protecting the Human Rights of Older Persons.  Economic, social and cultural rights had been included in the development paradigm and national public policies, which had been reflected in the human development indicators as well.  Life expectancy had risen to 79 years, while the infant mortality had been reduced to 8,02 per 1,000.  Social security coverage was extended to 94,4 percent of the population,  and 97,1 percent of the population had access to drinking water. The national electric service coverage has reached 99,1 percent.

In spite of those positive results, Mr. Solano-Ortiz acknowledged the growing problem of inequality and stated that the current Government had adopted a new approach towards fighting poverty, elaborated in the new National Strategy for the reduction of poverty.  The Government had launched the “Bridge to Development” programme, led by the Vice- President of the Republic.  Priority attention was given to social co-management structures and single information registration had been used for beneficiaries.  Thus far, 27,439 families had been incorporated in the programme, and assistance had been allocated to 109,308 families in the 75 most impoverished districts in the country.  To improve the housing situation, the connected households programme had been launched.  When it came to the rights of indigenous persons, the Office of the Presidential Commissioner for Affairs of the African descendants had been created by Decree No. 388-35-RUE in January 2015 as a permanent platform responsible for the effective realization of the rights of peoples of African descent.  Such efforts sought to fulfil the ILO and the United Nations Declaration onIndigenous Peoples.  The 2015-2018 National Plan for People of African Descent had been produced.


Questions by Experts


RODRIGO UPRIMNY, Committee Member and Country Rapporteur for Costa Rica, expressed his deep appreciation for the achievements and notable progress made by Costa Rica in the area of human rights, but warned that in aspects of certain economic, social and cultural rights the country had stagnated, or even made a step back.  The Committee stated its concern that stagnation within social development matters overshadowed the general successful track record of Costa Rica.

Regarding the development and drafting process of the report, the Committee received complaints from the Ombudsman and civil society organisations that there had been no consultation mechanism between the Government and other counterparts.  Why was there no consultation mechanism and what had the state bodies been doing to ensure implementation of the recommendations of treaty bodies?

Was there an institutional set up and appropriate body and mechanism for advancing social policy?

Regarding the applicability of the Covenant in the domestic legal order, and the role that constitutional chambers played – there was criticism that such rulings were more of declarative nature.  Were there real implications stemming from the chambers’ rulings?

Did the right to prior consultation of indigenous matters exist, asked the Expert

Several questions were raised regarding the rights of indigenous persons:  the construction of hydroelectric powers and consultations with indigenous people that had been affected, occupation of the indigenous land by non-indigenous persons and the lack of restitution; the question of effective enjoyment of rights by indigenous people and persons of African descent, etc.

Why was the draft bill on indigenous persons not adopted?  What strategies were in place to return the land to indigenous people?

The question of discrimination was raised.  While the institute of Ombudsman existed, it was unclear what mechanisms for fighting discrimination were in place, seeing how there had been no general law outlawing discrimination.  How did the country ensure the implementation of anti-discrimination measures?

What measures did the country undertake to protect and ensure realisation of rights of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons?

On the subject of migration, having in mind that Costa Rica received significant influx of migrants and refugees, as well as delays that existed in determining status of migrants, what steps had the Government taken to address obstacles that migrants faced?

The delegation was asked to provide a clarification regarding state spending on social policy and health. Moreover, a question was raised on how the redistribution of income would be conducted during the severe fiscal reforms.

The final question concerned the matter of sexual and reproductive health of women.

Another Expert asked the delegation to provide information on unemployment rates, disagreed by urban/rural areas, sex and age.

Bearing in mind a high informal employment rate and that many people worked under risky conditions, the question was asked what the country had been doing to ensure that labour rights of informally employed persons were protected.


Regarding the employment of women and equal opportunities, the available data showed that the problem of female employment remained.  What had the Government been doing to promote greater participation of women in work force and ensure equal treatment, reducing income gaps between men and women?

On the reduction of unemployment of the marginalized groups, the delegation was asked to provide assessment on how the marginalized groups benefited from policy measures.

The Expert asked for information on the main findings regarding the minimum wage.  Was it a universal minimum wage or dependent of the sector?

The concern was also raised vis-à-vis  domestic workers.  The 2010 amendment of the Labour Code was positively acknowledged, but a question was raised on the insufficient capacities of the national labour inspectorate.

Further information was required on why the ratification of the International Labour Organization Maternity Protection Convention was moving so slowly.

What measures had the State party taken to ensure that marginalized groups obtain voluntary insurance?

An Expert underlined the fact that Costa Rica was the only country with no army, and asked where the money that would usually be allocated for the security sector went.  He further asked about the security situation in the country, having in mind the low presence of the police.

Question was also asked on what had been done to promote integration between different ethnic groups.

Replies by the Delegation

On the participation of civil society in the production of the report, it was explained that the Government had undertaken a series of measures to include civil society, including organisations representing migrants, elderly, indigenous people, and the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.  Civil society members were invited to share their concerns in order to incorporate all concerns in the report.  The idea had been to establish a civil society human rights body that would conduct follow up on the recommendations of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.  That pilot project was expected to start soon, following the similar process that had been initiated and operationally developed by Paraguay.

Regarding the need to have a guiding body that would mainstream social policy, the country recognized  a need to have an institution in charge of social policy which would articulate all social needs, and it had been embodied in the Ministry of Social Security, headed by the Vice- President.  

As for the status of Covenant in domestic law, the rulings taken by the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice had made real impact on the implementation of policies.  One example had been in vitro fertilization, which had been prohibited in Costa Rica.  However, following the judgment of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, in vitro fertilization had now been allowed in one health centre – private clinic in the country.  Currently a coordinating body for health regulation had been drafting the regulation that would allow in vitro fertilization to all citizens.   

Regarding the drafting of the Law on Autonomous Development of Indigenous People, it had been a shaky path to ensure that all stakeholders got on board and incorporated their concerns.  To ensure access to justice, courts had been created throughout the country in order to receive proceedings of indigenous people.  Rural courts had been established to enable high quality judicial hearings. As for the land conflict, magistrates that specialized in that matter had been in charge, and all proceedings were conducted in line with the United Nations guidelines on indigenous persons. The Rural Development Institute had set up a commission whose aim had been to set in motion the restitution plan in most affected provinces.

In regards to the lack of law that would ban discrimination, the delegation explained that in September 2016, the Ombudsman had submitted to a parliamentary committee a framework law for combating all forms of discrimination, addressing discrimination in a comprehensive manner and punishing discriminatory behaviour in all aspects of life.

The delegation further informed the Committee about the regular consultations that had been conducted with representatives of the indigenous community, seeking to timely address all concerns relating to issues of land, employment and representation.

Regarding the state expenditure for social rights, the delegation provided the information on the central budget, as well as on means allocated from decentralized budget – both the local government and the decentralized budget.  Figures were also provided for education and health, stating that health and education combined allocation would be 19-20 percent of the Gross Domestic Product.

On the topic of the  rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons, the delegation informed the Committee that Costa Rica had a series of administrative and policy measures on all levels ensuring that those persons were not discriminated against.  There were a total of 15 specific measures which would be given to the Committee in writing, elaborating in detail the provisions.

As for the question on migrants and determination of their status, representative delegate informed the Committee that an agreement had been signed with the International Organization for Migration and the United Nations Refugee Agency, stipulating that Costa Rica would assist transit migrants on its territory in duration of 90 days, prior to their relocation.  The delegation stressed that the country had been recently experiencing a large influx of Cuban migrants as well as Haitian nationals.  A series of important decisions and policies had been adopted, ensuring full respect of human rights and seeking to avoid human trafficking.  Migration of Nicaraguan women that were attending hospitals in Costa Rica and would often arrive with no identity documents were an additional problem, however the Government had been trying to provide universal health assistance to all, regardless of the absence of documents.

On the topic of ratification of International Labour Organization conventions, the head of the delegation explained that the issue had not been the negligence of the Government, but that the reason for rather slow progress had been endeavour to incorporate concern of all counterparts.

Follow-up Questions

Further clarification was required on the voluntary scheme of the insurance system.

Regarding the Inter-American Convention on Protecting the Human Rights of Older Persons and emerging attempts to revise the Convention, an  Expert asked the delegation for their own take on the Convention, having in mind the national experience with such policies.

On the role of the judiciary in implementing provisions of the Covenant, the question was asked whether the judicial staff had been fully aware of the Covenant and its provisions.  Further information was sought on how the judicial decisions were enforced.

The restrictive nature of the abortion law had been endangering the sexual and reproductive rights of women, seeing how abortion was permitted only in cases when there was risk to the health or life of the mother.  Had there been any debate on the reform of abortion law, to make it less restrictive?

Another Expert asked what measures had been taken to combat child exploitation.

The question was also raised on the naturalization of indigenous children that were born by Panamanian  or Nicaraguan parents, seeing how they would often lack identity documents.

What had been done to enable enjoyment of social and cultural rights by migrants and refugees?

With regard to the right to water and situation, question was asked on the current legislative framework.  Should the framework be revised?  What measures should be taken to avoid water pollution, which had been an issue on the rise recently?

to the Expert also raised the issue of housing situation and forced evictions.  The report noted a high number of marginalized communities living in precarious conditions as well as forced evictions conducted contrary to human rights standards.  Was the State providing any remedy for such situations?

On the right to food, the Committee was aware of the State plan on  food and nutritional quality which aimed to boost diet quality.  However, an area of concern had been noticed in a high number of mothers that had been breastfeeding only, causing a problem for the health of both mothers and infants. What had the Government done to address that problem?


The reports on education in Costa Rica, access to primary education and gender equality and education were areas receiving positive assessment. However, the topic of quality of education was largely absent from the State Party report, particularly sections on teacher training and recognition of teacher skills. Could the delegation provide more information in that regard?

Regional disparities on access to education were stated in the report, but further information would be needed emphasising the differences in the quality of education.

Since the report warned about for the high rate of school drop-outs, the delegation was asked to provide information on what measures had been taken to address the problem, and about the impact of implemented measures.

Pre-school education had not been mentioned extensively in the report, however there had been worrying figures on the decrease of availability of pre-school education across the country.  The delegation was asked for further information on pre-school education.

Regarding the access to education to persons with disabilities, question was asked if there was statistical information and some good practices worth sharing with the Committee.

Question was also posed on the access to education for indigenous people. Was there information on teacher training for indigenous persons?  Also, according to the findings of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, several indigenous languages were on the verge of extinction in Costa Rica.  Had the Government taken any measures to preserve indigenous languages in on the verge of extinction?

The delegation asked to share the best practice and model where scientific progress had been used to facilitate enjoyment of human rights.


Replies by the Delegation

Regarding the voluntary insurance by the State, it was explained that the insurance provided access to all services and it had been one of the major achievements of the administration.

Answering on the capacities of judges and judiciary stuff regarding their understanding of the Covenant, the delegation affirmed that all judges were highly competent legal professionals, fully knowledgeable on the international human rights law instruments.

As for the Inter-American Convention on Protecting the Human Rights of Older Persons, the delegation did not want to undermine the value of the Convention or the Covenant, but rather to consolidate the framework by focusing on specific issues and developing measures specifically addressing one category of population that was gaining more importance due to the aging populations worldwide.

The delegation emphasized that, in addition to all the replies given during the session, Committee Experts would be provided, in due course, with written replies containing relevant statistics and assessments, so that the Committee could incorporate all relevant information in the final recommendations.

Regarding the social policy, initiatives conducted were sustainable and based on solidarity.  There was a system for monitoring social measures which was coordinated and overseen by the Vice-President of the Republic.  Social development flagship initiatives, which were providing assistance to vulnerable persons, were led by the First Lady.  The major government programme, such as the “Bridge to Development”, coordinated various state institutions and had incorporated over 100,000 persons in its scheme.  Young persons were offered grants, in form of cash transfers, in order to remain in schools.  Additionally, state education centres provided trainings for young people, teaching them valuable skills so that they would not end up in an informal economy. As mentioned, social security and access to the pension system did not depend on the social standing of citizens.

The delegation provided an overview of several important social development initiatives.  Vulnerable people often had problems in getting access to the banking system, so the Government provided them with an opportunity to join the banking system.  The programme “Digital Costa Rica” fostered access to the Internet throughout the country.  The project “Connected Households” allowed households in remote areas to obtain access to the Internet, free of charge.  The “Information Society” project was run through health services, and services broadband access to internet in public parks had been rolled out.

The incorporation of the Social Development Goals in the national agenda was the ultimate goal of the Government. National and local stakeholders, along with international organisations, had created a social agenda seeking to achieve the 17 Social Development Goals and 169 targets.  The Commission for social agenda had been established and was led by the President of the Republic.  The positive experience and commitment from fulfilling the Millennium Development Goals had been used as a reference when conceptualising the social agenda.

The poverty rate had remained the same over the past 20 years, but the larger problem was the inequality which had risen according to the Gini coefficient.  Many foreign companies had closed off their premises in Costa Rica and had moved to other countries, causing the structural unemployment.  While historically the unemployment rate had been five percent, it had increased substantially over the course of the past few years.  For that reason, the National Strategy for Employment and National Employment Programme was seeking to create specific employment opportunities for the vulnerable groups.

The minimum wage was decided based on the sector and qualifications.  Through the work of the Labour Inspection Directorate, the State ensured that minimum wage was paid.

When it came to the situation and rights of the domestic workers, their minimum wages were raised. Additionally, Chapter 8 of the Labour Code regulated the conditions for domestic workers, providing them with social insurance, paid holidays and overall ensuring that domestic workers had become part of the regular formal system and had become protected.  The Social Security Institute had made a decision to provide domestic workers with the access to direct insurance.

The reform of the Labour Procedural Code was ongoing.  Important changes were to be made in order to speed up the justice processes for workers and provide free legal aid for workers with lower income.  The Labour Inspectorate had been consolidated and new labour inspectors, administrative staff and lawyers would be soon recruited.

General act stipulated free access to treatment of persons living with HIV/AIDS, and policies were in place ensuring there would be no discrimination.  Legislative Commission on Human Rights had been leading the reform of the General Act, aiming to develop a more comprehensive policy on treatment of HIV/AIDS.

Regarding the right to prior consultation of indigenous people, the delegation briefed the experts on the construction of the hydroelectric plant on the land of an indigenous people in southern part of the country.  The project included a provision that indigenous people had to be previously consulted.  Since, at the time, it had not been possible to establish effective representation of the indigenous people, the project had been suspended. Several other examples were mentioned by the delegation,  all affirming that the right to prior consultation had been implemented.

As for the indigenous language being on the verge of extinction, the delegation stressed that that was not the case. There were two indigenous languages that disappeared already in the eighteenth century.  Two languages were taught in schools, and there were committees consisting of teachers speaking those languages.

The process of preserving education in indigenous languages went hand-in-hand with providing access to schools and furnishing schools in remote areas.  Transport had been provided to children in indigenous areas.  Provision of food was also ensured in community schools.  Such measures were all part of the Government commitment to ensure 100 percent school attendance.

Within the institutional framework, the Unit for Migration and Development was in charge for developing specific projects that had been promoting inclusive approach in working with migrants in communities.  Integration policies were also developed to fight xenophobia and negative stereotypes towards migrants in the local communities.

As for the salary gaps, the Experts were informed that companies were audited by the Ministry and that the equality stamp had been introduced for such purpose – type of certification that proved that companies in private and public sectors had incorporated that aspect in their work.

Additional efforts were made to assist indigenous communities by promoting cooperatives. The projects usually targeted women working in handcrafts. The aim of the projects had been to assist women in building their own skills and becoming entrepreneurs.

Access to the health system of indigenous communities had been facilitated through the use of drones that served to provide medicine.  Such practice had been used in the mountainous region of Talamanca and other regions bordering Panama, ensuring that all persons had access to medicine.

As for the costs of migration and asylum policy, the United Nations Refugee Agency covered the costs of processing and conducting asylum procedures. Regarding the provision of healthcare and education, the United Nations Refugee Agency signed an agreement with the Social Security Fund and the Ministry of Education, stipulating that the United Nations Refugee Agency would be paying for the provision of education and health services.  The identity documents did not state the category of asylum seekers, in order to avoid discrimination. Therefore, the identity documents were the same as for any other foreign national.

It was acknowledged that Cost Rica faced challenge in providing statistics and data in the field of employment, especially disaggregated according to criterion of ethnic background. 

The Government had established the non-contributory pension system for vulnerable persons, to meet basic fundamental needs of deprived population.  The average salary for persons residing in urban areas was USD 200 per month, whereas those residing in rural areas were given approximately USD 160 per month.

On the topic of evictions, there was on an operational protocol in place, ensuring that in all the cases the human rights criteria prevailed, so that evictions could not take place unless a set of reasons was fulfilled.   The evictions were conducted in three cases: 1) for reasons of safety, when there had been a danger of landslide, or natural hazards; 2) when building infrastructure, which had been happening with the ring road in San Jose; 3) by a court order or court challenge.  The evictions could only take place if the representatives of the National Institute for Child Welfare and the Costa Rican Red Cross were present.

In regards to abortion, the legislation regulated the definition of therapeutic abortion, that is, abortion that was not punishable under the Code.  Currently the Ministry of Health was working on consolidating the definition of the therapeutic abortion.  There was a pending case at the Inter-American Human Rights Court,  so national institutions had been working on developing technical guidelines so that the definition would be extended and that abortion could be permitted in a larger number of cases.

On the issue of teacher trainings, the  delegation informed that the National Plan for continuous teacher training detailed all relevant activities and plans, including national and international initiatives.  Costa Rica had a series of bilateral agreements with different countries, in order to foster the exchange of teachers.

Regarding the quality of education, many schools were equipped with computer labs and pupils were given the opportunity to take full advantage of the information technology.  The Inter-American Development Bank had given a loan to the Government to refurbish schools, particularly in the less developed regions such as Talamanca.

Follow-up Questions

Was the national agenda in support of the 2030 Agenda in line with human rights considerations?  In what manner did the human rights approach support the development agenda?

An Expert raised again the question of the legal nature of anti-discrimination.  In addition to all the anti-discrimination measures that existed, had there been a consideration to adopt a general law that would prohibit discrimination?

Regarding the non-contributory pensions, there was a waiting period of 18 months for older persons.  The Expert asked about the state of implementation of the non-contributory pensions.  Was there something the Government could do to simplify the procedures so that people would not wait for so long?

An Expert raised again the question of poverty rate, asking about the measures that the Government undertook to reduce it.  Another Expert asked the delegation to elaborate more on what had been done to combat the growing inequality.

Could the domestic workers join the trade unions, asked the Expert.

The question of access to education of disabled persons was also raised. 

Data showed that only 37 percent of children had access to pre-school education.  What strategy did the country have in place to increase the attendance?

Question was raised on female labour participation in the work force as well as what the Government had done to bring down the rate of female unemployment to the same level as the male unemployment rate.

Acknowledging that Costa Rica had an exemplary health system which had often been promoted internationally for its best practices, an Expert raised a question on one shortcoming of the health system – the long waiting lists.  Aware that the reason for long waiting lists was often the shortage of the specialists in a certain sector, question was raised on whether any measures were undertaken to resolve that problem.

Further information was requested on women’s sexual and reproductive rights.  The Committee received the information on high number of teenage pregnancies that had been linked to the lack of sexual education and the lack of access to sexual and reproductive rights.  In line with the consolidation of the definition on therapeutic abortion, were there considerations to extend the number of grounds that would make abortion permissible?

Concerning the complex situation surrounding the issue of in vitro fertilization, the delegation was asked to clarify the current legal standing of in vitro fertilization, having in mind that the ruling of the Supreme Court of Justice rejected the possibility of it, the Inter-American court ruling allowed it, and the executive decree had regulated the access to in vitro fertilization. 
         
Were all indigenous languages dealt on the same level?   The question was raised on the capacities of the Government to deal with the protection and promotion of all indigenous languages.

Replies by the Delegation

The delegation said that the national development agenda was fully reconciled with the human rights considerations and had been developed in consultations with all relevant United Nations agencies.

Regarding the question on general framework that would combat all discrimination, it was explained that there had been ongoing efforts between the Ombudsman and the Parliament to draft a law prohibiting all forms of discrimination.  The delegation welcomed all examples of best practices and lessons learned in that field.

On the issue of the poverty rate and the inequality, it was reiterated that Costa Rica had high human development indicators, reflecting significant achievements in the area of provision of social services.  The Government continued to invest measures focusing on fighting poverty, as envisioned with the new National Strategy for reduction of poverty, and comprehensive efforts had been undertaken to reduce extreme poverty, promote social development and provide greater rights to deprived persons.  The assessments had shown that the envisaged measures would contribute to reducing extreme poverty by two percent.

There was a trade union of the domestic workers, and Costa Rica ratified the International Labour Organization Convention 181.

Concerning the pre-school education, it was explained that the cultural context was an important reason for a low rate of attendance, and the Government had been conducting large scale awareness-raising campaigns to increase the attendance rate.

A single online processing system had been introduced to resolve the question of the long waiting lists.  Moreover, primary health centres were to be opened on weekends in order to improve basic, primary treatment of patients.

As for the in vitro fertilization, the delegation clarified that there had been no contradiction between the Constitutional Chamber ruling and the Inter-American court ruling, so the Government would continue to provide access to the said procedure.

The question of deforestation was one of the cornerstones of the environmentally sustainable economy. Costa Rica had moved from a major deforestation trend in the 1970s to offering a series of incentives to protect forests, thus significantly reducing the deforestation trend.  A number of innovative practices, such as payment for environmental services, had been introduced in environmental policies to preserve the forests.

Concluding Remarks
 
ALEJANDRO SOLANO-ORTIZ, the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, thanked, on behalf of the delegation, for the sincere dialogue and reiterated Costa Rica’s full commitment to fulfilling the recommendations of treaty bodies.  Dialogues such as this one allowed the country to assess its strengths and weaknesses, and to enrich the national agenda within the existing national capabilities.  The work of the Committee assisted all the countries in building inclusive societies and environments where no person would be left behind.  Mr. Solano-Ortiz affirmed that the delegation would disseminate recommendations to civil society actors and other stakeholders, and that the Government would make sure to update all information regarding the national policies for other treaty bodies.

RODRIGO UPRIMNY, Committee Member and Country Rapporteur for Costa Rica, expressed his gratitude to the Costa Rican delegation for the frank dialogue.  The evidence on progress that the country made had been demonstrated, and the delegation also recognized the limitations that the country faced.  The dialogue served to provide an update on all the policies and new measures that the Government of Costa Rica had implemented.  The delegation answered to the vast majority of questions, and hope was expressed that written replies would further assist in drawing final recommendations.

WALEED SADI, Chairperson of the Committee, thanked the delegation for the candid and sincere dialogue.  Costa Rica was commended for fulfilling its international obligations and for having a high  Human Development Index.  Mr. Sadi expressed hope that the Government would pay close attention to the recommendations.