Brazil's Public Administration and the Challenge of New Democracies: Promoting Social Inclusion

Abstract

Brazil's public administration (PA) has sought to strengthen democratic governance through an emphasis on social inclusion. Since democratization in 1988, reforms have aimed to address entrenched inequalities along with decentralization and professionalism spurring innovations in social inclusion. This article examines Brazil's PA and highlights its key PA innovations, specifically: (a) inclusive public policy councils with substantial oversight of implementation; (b) legislative public accountability bodies with authority to impose penalties; (c) devolution granting far-reaching administrative, political, and financial constitutional autonomy to cities to enhance responsiveness and innovation; and (d) wide-ranging guaranteed income programs to reduce poverty. This article also draws attention to co-existing PA “islands of excellence” and efforts to address such challenges as rule-bound bureaucracies, clientelism, and weak institutional capacities in the Global South. It concludes with implications for strengthening public managers' leadership in democratic governance.