Child-Friendly Spaces in Costa Rica
This resource was developed through the Innovations in Addressing Child Trafficking (IACT) Program, which is combating child sex trafficking in the provinces of Guanacaste and Puntarenas. The IACT Program works to protect and assist child and adolescent trafficking victims, strengthen the prosecution of trafficking crimes, and prevent the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents. IACT is being implemented by The Warnath Group from 2020-2025 in close collaboration with the Government of Costa Rica and civil society organizations, through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of State Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. The Warnath Group is an organization specialized in evidence-based programs to address human trafficking, including child trafficking.
This resource was funded through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of State. The opinions, findings, and conclusions stated herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of State.
Child-Friendly Spaces in Costa Rica
A child-friendly space is an environment that is designed to help children and adolescents feel safe, calm, and comfortable while they are interacting with practitioners. A child-friendly space is about more than just the physical space. It is about how children and adolescents feel when they are in this space. For child and adolescent trafficking victims, child-friendly spaces are typically utilized in locations where practitioners interact with formerly trafficked children and adolescents in the course of their professional work. The practitioners who are present in a child-friendly space will depend on the nature of the space and the work being done. They may work for the government, non-governmental organizations, or private organizations. The IACT Program developed 60 child-friendly spaces across 16 locations in Guanacaste, Puntarenas, and San José. This resource shares select before and after photos from some of these spaces.
Instructions
On each page, click and drag on the arrows to move the slider to the left or to the right to see the before and after photos of the child-friendly space.
PANI Corredores
This child-friendly space is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners to receive psychological care, counseling, and case management.
PANI Corredores
This open waiting area is for younger children to wait for appointments or while their parents or siblings are meeting with PANI practitioners.
PANI Garabito
This “early childhood” waiting room can be used for interventions with younger children.
PANI Garabito
The open waiting area for younger children features toys, art supplies, and educational tools to keep children occupied and comfortable while waiting for appointments.
PANI Garabito
This large and open child-friendly space can be used for educational or extracurricular group activities, such as prevention or risk reduction sessions on trafficking in persons with a group of adolescents.
PANI Garabito
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to engage in prevention and protection activities, meet with PANI practitioners, and/or receive services (psychological care, counseling, case management).
PANI Garabito
This “early childhood” waiting room can be used for interventions with younger children and as a space for adolescent mothers who are breastfeeding.
PANI Garabito
This “teen zone” is for adolescents (ages 13+) who are waiting to meet with a practitioner or attend an activity. These areas are designed for adolescents, with furniture and decorations that appeal to teenagers.
Golfito Hospital
This examination room is used by medical professionals to provide medical care to child and adolescent trafficking victims.
Golfito Hospital
This child-friendly space is used to meet with child and adolescent trafficking victims and their family members.
PANI La Cruz
This “teen zone” is for adolescents to wait for appointments and/or to meet with PANI practitioners for receiving services such as psychological care, counseling, and case management.
PANI La Cruz
This open waiting area is for younger children to wait for appointments and/or while their parents or siblings are meeting with PANI practitioners.
PANI La Cruz
The main waiting area for the PANI La Cruz office is important to setting the foundation for a trauma-informed and child-friendly experience.
PANI La Cruz
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
DARI Liberia
This child-friendly space is for PANI practitioners to provide emergency protection, psychological care, counseling, and case management to child and adolescent trafficking victims.
DARI Liberia
The main waiting area for the PANI DARI office was equipped with items to make children and adolescents feel as comfortable as possible during their first interactions with practitioners.
PANI Liberia
The outdoor space was transformed to the “teen zone” for adolescents and an open waiting area for younger children to wait for appointments.
Prosecutor's Office - Liberia
The observer room across from the Gesell camera room is for prosecutors or staff from the Department of Social Work and Psychology to meet with child and adolescent trafficking victims.
Prosecutor's Office - Liberia
This Gesell camera room is for the purpose of conducting forensic interviews with child and adolescent trafficking victims.
PANI Nicoya
This “teen zone” is for adolescents to wait for appointments or meet with PANI practitioners for receiving services (psychological care, counseling, case management).
PANI Nicoya
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services (psychological care, counseling, case management).
PANI Nicoya
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
PANI Nicoya
This open waiting area is for younger children to wait for appointments and/or while their parents or siblings are meeting with PANI practitioners.
PANI Paquera
The main open area for the PANI Paquera office, which is visible from most of the building, was designed to connect to nature and make the entire office feel child-friendly.
PANI Paquera
This “teen zone” is for adolescents to wait for appointments or meet with PANI practitioners for receiving services (psychological care, counseling, case management).
PANI Paquera
This open waiting area is for younger children to wait for appointments and/or while their parents or siblings are meeting with PANI practitioners.
PANI Paquera
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
PANI Paquera
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
DARI Puntarenas
This child-friendly space is for PANI practitioners to provide emergency protection, psychological care, counseling, and case management to child and adolescent trafficking victims.
DARI Puntarenas
The main waiting area for the PANI DARI office is a welcoming space for children, adolescents, and their families.
PANI Quepos
The main waiting area for the PANI Quepos office, which is utilized by all visitors to PANI to wait for appointments, includes an area for younger children, as well as an area for adolescents.
PANI Quepos
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
PANI Quepos
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
PANI Quepos
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
PANI Santa Cruz
This “teen zone” is for adolescents to wait for appointments or meet with PANI practitioners for receiving services (psychological care, counseling, case management).
PANI Santa Cruz
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
PANI Santa Cruz
This “early childhood” waiting room can be used for interventions with younger children, as well as by adolescent mothers who are breastfeeding.
PANI Santa Cruz
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
IACT Program Child-Friendly Spaces
Warnath Group
Created on November 3, 2025
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Transcript
Child-Friendly Spaces in Costa Rica
This resource was developed through the Innovations in Addressing Child Trafficking (IACT) Program, which is combating child sex trafficking in the provinces of Guanacaste and Puntarenas. The IACT Program works to protect and assist child and adolescent trafficking victims, strengthen the prosecution of trafficking crimes, and prevent the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents. IACT is being implemented by The Warnath Group from 2020-2025 in close collaboration with the Government of Costa Rica and civil society organizations, through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of State Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. The Warnath Group is an organization specialized in evidence-based programs to address human trafficking, including child trafficking.
This resource was funded through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of State. The opinions, findings, and conclusions stated herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of State.
Child-Friendly Spaces in Costa Rica
A child-friendly space is an environment that is designed to help children and adolescents feel safe, calm, and comfortable while they are interacting with practitioners. A child-friendly space is about more than just the physical space. It is about how children and adolescents feel when they are in this space. For child and adolescent trafficking victims, child-friendly spaces are typically utilized in locations where practitioners interact with formerly trafficked children and adolescents in the course of their professional work. The practitioners who are present in a child-friendly space will depend on the nature of the space and the work being done. They may work for the government, non-governmental organizations, or private organizations. The IACT Program developed 60 child-friendly spaces across 16 locations in Guanacaste, Puntarenas, and San José. This resource shares select before and after photos from some of these spaces.
Instructions
On each page, click and drag on the arrows to move the slider to the left or to the right to see the before and after photos of the child-friendly space.
PANI Corredores
This child-friendly space is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners to receive psychological care, counseling, and case management.
PANI Corredores
This open waiting area is for younger children to wait for appointments or while their parents or siblings are meeting with PANI practitioners.
PANI Garabito
This “early childhood” waiting room can be used for interventions with younger children.
PANI Garabito
The open waiting area for younger children features toys, art supplies, and educational tools to keep children occupied and comfortable while waiting for appointments.
PANI Garabito
This large and open child-friendly space can be used for educational or extracurricular group activities, such as prevention or risk reduction sessions on trafficking in persons with a group of adolescents.
PANI Garabito
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to engage in prevention and protection activities, meet with PANI practitioners, and/or receive services (psychological care, counseling, case management).
PANI Garabito
This “early childhood” waiting room can be used for interventions with younger children and as a space for adolescent mothers who are breastfeeding.
PANI Garabito
This “teen zone” is for adolescents (ages 13+) who are waiting to meet with a practitioner or attend an activity. These areas are designed for adolescents, with furniture and decorations that appeal to teenagers.
Golfito Hospital
This examination room is used by medical professionals to provide medical care to child and adolescent trafficking victims.
Golfito Hospital
This child-friendly space is used to meet with child and adolescent trafficking victims and their family members.
PANI La Cruz
This “teen zone” is for adolescents to wait for appointments and/or to meet with PANI practitioners for receiving services such as psychological care, counseling, and case management.
PANI La Cruz
This open waiting area is for younger children to wait for appointments and/or while their parents or siblings are meeting with PANI practitioners.
PANI La Cruz
The main waiting area for the PANI La Cruz office is important to setting the foundation for a trauma-informed and child-friendly experience.
PANI La Cruz
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
DARI Liberia
This child-friendly space is for PANI practitioners to provide emergency protection, psychological care, counseling, and case management to child and adolescent trafficking victims.
DARI Liberia
The main waiting area for the PANI DARI office was equipped with items to make children and adolescents feel as comfortable as possible during their first interactions with practitioners.
PANI Liberia
The outdoor space was transformed to the “teen zone” for adolescents and an open waiting area for younger children to wait for appointments.
Prosecutor's Office - Liberia
The observer room across from the Gesell camera room is for prosecutors or staff from the Department of Social Work and Psychology to meet with child and adolescent trafficking victims.
Prosecutor's Office - Liberia
This Gesell camera room is for the purpose of conducting forensic interviews with child and adolescent trafficking victims.
PANI Nicoya
This “teen zone” is for adolescents to wait for appointments or meet with PANI practitioners for receiving services (psychological care, counseling, case management).
PANI Nicoya
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services (psychological care, counseling, case management).
PANI Nicoya
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
PANI Nicoya
This open waiting area is for younger children to wait for appointments and/or while their parents or siblings are meeting with PANI practitioners.
PANI Paquera
The main open area for the PANI Paquera office, which is visible from most of the building, was designed to connect to nature and make the entire office feel child-friendly.
PANI Paquera
This “teen zone” is for adolescents to wait for appointments or meet with PANI practitioners for receiving services (psychological care, counseling, case management).
PANI Paquera
This open waiting area is for younger children to wait for appointments and/or while their parents or siblings are meeting with PANI practitioners.
PANI Paquera
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
PANI Paquera
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
DARI Puntarenas
This child-friendly space is for PANI practitioners to provide emergency protection, psychological care, counseling, and case management to child and adolescent trafficking victims.
DARI Puntarenas
The main waiting area for the PANI DARI office is a welcoming space for children, adolescents, and their families.
PANI Quepos
The main waiting area for the PANI Quepos office, which is utilized by all visitors to PANI to wait for appointments, includes an area for younger children, as well as an area for adolescents.
PANI Quepos
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
PANI Quepos
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
PANI Quepos
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
PANI Santa Cruz
This “teen zone” is for adolescents to wait for appointments or meet with PANI practitioners for receiving services (psychological care, counseling, case management).
PANI Santa Cruz
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.
PANI Santa Cruz
This “early childhood” waiting room can be used for interventions with younger children, as well as by adolescent mothers who are breastfeeding.
PANI Santa Cruz
This room is for child and adolescent trafficking victims to meet with PANI practitioners for the purposes of preliminary identification and receiving services.