Costa Rica Tourism Companies Say "No" to Child Sexual Exploitation.

By Heillen Sánchez, World Vision Costa Rica Communications
Contributing writer: Lisa Bedolla, Child Sex Tourism Prevention Project Regional Coordinator

On January 19, 80 hotels and other tourism companies in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, declared their support for ending commercial sexual exploitation of children and adolescents in the region by signing the Code of Conduct for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism. The Code of Conduct, a joint initiative of UNICEF, the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the international advocacy group ECPAT (End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and the Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes), seeks to engage the travel industry in efforts to protect children from commercial sexual exploitation.

Tourism is the primary industry for the city Guanacaste, one of the poorest areas of Costa Rica with one of the highest rates of child and adolescent exploitation. The companies who sign the Code commit to train their staff on how to identify and report instances of child sex tourism and develop appropriate messages educating tourists about this type of crime.

World Vision deters would-be sex tourists with a targeted media campaign.

“Through raising awareness, we are warning those committing this crime that they are to be denounced and that they will end up in prison,” said Patricia Duar, president of the Costa Rican Association of Tourism Professionals (ACOPROT, in Spanish).

As part of the Child Sex Tourism Prevention Program launched in 2004, World Vision seeks to combat the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents in the U.S., Costa Rica, Mexico, Brazil, Cambodia and Thailand. In Costa Rica, World Vision has joined forces with Code organizers to promote the initiative. World Vision also provides training for its staff on how to identify and report instances of child sex tourism, has developed protocols with local and US law enforcement on how and where to report cases, and has developed a powerful ad campaign to increase awareness and deter sex tourists in Costa Rica.

World Vision has three Area Development Programs (ADPs) in the Guanacaste region.