From CCTs to a social investment welfare state? Brazil's ‘new’ pro-poor strategy

Abstract

The changes in Brazil's pro-poor strategy from the presidency of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to that of Dilma Roussef have received little analysis. Based on a qualitative research approach that includes media analysis, semi-structured interviews with local level elites, NGO representatives and Brazilian policy experts, the central argument here is that, although it is true that this ‘new’ approach closely approximates a European-style social investment agenda that goes beyond the policy intentions of Conditional Cash Transfers (CCTs), in reality it continues to prioritize ‘expanding access to complementary services’ over improving the ‘quality’ of publicly provided services. Using the example of Brasil Carinhoso, one of the federal government's priority programmes within the Brasil Sem Miséria programme designed to be complementary to Bolsa Família, the article outlines the initial challenges facing this emerging agenda, along with its key political constraints. Show more