Brazil : Equitable, Competitive, Sustainable--Contributions for Debate

This volume presents a set of Policy Notes prepared by the World Bank's Brazil Team with partners during 2002 as a contribution for the debate of policies by the new federal and state governments elected in October 2002. The objectives of making these Policy Notes available to a broader audience is twofold. It could contribute to the discussion in Brazil and elsewhere about public policies to be formulated by the Brazilian governments for the period 2003-2006, and beyond. It could also serve as a vehicle to exchange lessons of experience from Brazil to the rest of the world and vice versa. Since the Policy Notes were written for an incoming administration that would be well familiar with recent developments in Brazil, they do not attempt a comprehensive assessment of Brazil's impressive recent progress but rather focus on the challenges in areas where World Bank and related partner experience appears relevant. The Policy Notes were prepared during 2002, a period during which economic uncertainties mounted ahead of the presidential elections of October 2002. They do not reflect information on the important policy discussions and developments after the elections. These notes do not deal with all policy issues of relevance for Brazil. Even on those issues which are addressed, the assessment may be focused on specific aspects. The selection of topics and the emphasis in the Policy Notes are, thus, driven by policy priorities and their timeliness. The Policy Notes do not attempt to present a comprehensive policy agenda; rather, they are meant to constitute timely contributions for discussions. The initial objective was to pull together findings of past World Bank Group studies, based on numerous other work by Brazilian and international authors, and experiences on Brazil, as well as relevant international experiences, and make them available to the new governments in a synthetic form.