Building consensus on youth violence prevention and citizen security in Central America

​IDRC’s efforts in negotiation and coalition building contributed to a high-level dialogue that engaged high-level officials and reaffirmed their commitment to preventing violence particularly among youth in Central America. At a meeting held at the Earth University in Costa Rica´s Limon Province in early February, Luis Fallas, Vice Minister for National Planning and Political Economy (MIDEPLAN), underscored the important role of state institutions in promoting youth employment and social inclusion to prevent violence. 

The dialogue was the result of a collaborative effort by a number of national and international institutions, including the Ministries of Public Security and Youth of Costa Rica, UNESCO, Earth University, Carlos Slim Foundation, MIDEPLAN, Central American Institute of Public Administration (ICAP), University of Costa Rica, and IDRC.

IDRC’s Governance and Justice Program has played an instrumental role in generating policy dialogues and ownership among key stakeholders by supporting new and innovative research on issues relating youth violence and security in Central America.

The meeting is a testimony to IDRC’s knowledge and expertise in the field of youth violence and its long-standing partnerships with local governmental and non-governmental actors and institutions in Central America, as well as new alliances with international organizations and private sector foundations.

The Governance and Justice Program in partnership with Carlos Slim Foundation is expected to launch a new program that will create a regional platform on these issues. It will bring together experts to gather knowledge, promising practices, intervention models, methodologies, and public policies to strengthen youth citizen security and promote economic inclusion of young people in Mexico and Central America.

Read about the Limon Dialogue: Prevención de la violencia en Centroamérica.