[Costa Rica] Poverty Causes School Exodus

from Prensa Latina

Costa Rican authorities recognized poverty as key cause of school drop-outs and announced the Money Transfer Program, a subsidy to help poor children complete their studies.

Official statistics show that last year, 12 of every 100 junior high school students dropped out, while national data indicate that each year 6.8 percent of all students, 64,459 children, quit school.

Education Minister Leonardo Garnier and Minister-Dean Fernando Zumbado, of the social sector and fight against poverty, announced the project and said it will benefit 3,500 students, beginning in July.

Conditions to enjoy the subsidy include remaining three years in the same education system, to prevent moving to other schools.

Costa Rica's population of 4.1 million consists of 206, 680 poor families, 5.6 percent living in abject poverty, and 53,941 families, mostly farmers, who are destitute.