Welcome to Focus International, a web site of Focus on the Family

Today’s Latin America suffers from a crisis in values.

An increasing rate of divorce, single mothers and domestic violence plague the region, while children and teens without any guidance are exposed to sexual exploitation, illegal work, violence and drugs.

Even though Costa Rica is considered one of the most stable countries in the world according to its political, social and economic indicators, it is not free from alarming social crises, similar to those other Latin American nations face today.

Divorce rates quadrupled between 1994 and 2002, reaching one per every four marriages in 1999. Domestic violence has also increased to a point in which studies now show that 91 percent of the aggressions toward women occur inside their homes. And the number of children being born out of wedlock is getting out of control, reaching 51 percent in 1999.

Many of these children being born out of wedlock are also being born to adolescent mothers, as 89 out of every 1,000 adolescents between the ages of 15 and 19 years old become pregnant. The average age in which sexual activity begins for Costa Rican youth is between 13 and 14 years old for males, and 15 years old for females.

Studies have also shown that the total denunciations presented to the National Patronage for Childhood (Patronato Nacional de la Infacia) increased 167 percent between 1998 and 1999. About 32,000 people could be infected with AIDS by the year 2002.

Costa Rican youth also begin drinking alcohol and smoking at an early age, the average being between 12 and 14 years old. In the area of education, approximately 11,500 young people are not attending school.  The absenteeism rate in 2002 was 9 percent, the main reason being financial hardship.

Facing this reality and faithful to its conviction that the welfare of the family directly reflects on the welfare of the country and knowing that this responsibility is not only for government officials, Enfoque a la Familia Costa Rica maintains the goal to provide help for Costa Rican families. To accomplish this goal, Enfoque, which opened its doors in September of 1998, has developed a series of different programs and services targeting children, youth, men, women, industries and governmental institutions.

Enfoque a la Familia’s seminars are delivered to more than 340 educational centers, reaching out to more than 48,000 young people with curriculums such as El Sexo, las Mentiras y la Verdad. At a corporate level, more than 350 organizations have chosen to use the services that this ministry offers through workshops, seminars, conferences and presentations.

The impact of these organizations has extended into the Costa Rican society, through presentations done on the themes of family, marriage, adolescence, sexuality, youth, childhood, personal development and productivity, to mention just a few.

In addition, the professional counselors of the Centro de Consejería y Atención Psicológica de Enfoque a la Familia Costa Rica, continue to help hundreds of people who contact the office looking for answers and guidance. This counseling department handles more than 600 cases a month.

Regarding media, when it comes to family issues, Enfoque a la Familia Costa Rica has become one of the main sources of information for the most important media institutions in the country. Its 90-second TV commentaries air on the No. 1 TV station in the country twice daily. In radio, 23 radio stations air more than 430 monthly programs that carry the 90-second Comentaries of Enfoque a la Familia. In addition, our specialists participate in different radio programs. The Dr. Dobson column is also published in all the editions of the largest women’s magazine in the country.