Social Participation in Federal Government’S Planning Cycle (BR0097)

Lead government institution Ministry of Planning, Development and Management Civil servant in charge for implementing at lead government institution Roseli Faria Position - Department General Coordinator/Monitoring and Evaluation Coordination E-mail roseli.faria@planejamento.gov.br Telephone 55 61 20204546 Other involved actors Government Ministry of Education Government Secretariat Institute of Applied Economic Research (IPEA) Civil society, private sector, group of workers and multilateral actors Institute for Socioeconomic Studies (Inesc) Urban Network of Sociocultural Actions Open Knowledge Brazil Wheels of Peace Status quo or problem/issue to be addressed The need of increasing social participation and also its effective approach, at the pluriannual plan (PPA) Main objective To improve and consolidate methods of social participation for the PPA formulation and management phases Commitment short description PPA participative monitoring, especially along with the transversal agenda, and also within the sustainable development goals (ODS), through digital tools OGP Challenge addressed by the Commitment Improvement of Public Services Increasing public integrity More effective public resources management Corporative accountability increment Commitment relevance Relevant for increasing PPA monitoring social participation Goal Greater social participation throughout PPA formulating and managing phases

14. Social Participation in Federal Government’s Planning Cycle

Commitment Text:

Maximize social participation on the Pluriannual Plan through the Intercouncil Forum

The commitment seeks alternatives to broaden social participation and to improve and consolidate methods of social participation for the PPA formulation and management phases, as it is considered the main tool of the Federal Government planning. Therefore, it is intended to make feasible the conduction of a PPA participatory monitoring, focusing on traversal agendas and on targets and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), using digital tools.

14.1 –PPA participative monitoring methodology draft formulation, taking into account transversal agendas, and the sustainable development goals (ODS)

14.2 – Enhancement of digital tools for monitoring the implementation of PPA and ODS goals and objectives

14.3 –Establishing a communication strategy to expand the access/use of digital tools for PPA monitoring

14.4 – Presenting a PPA implementation accountability by means of Intercouncil Forum (1 per year)

14.5 – Presenting a PPA implementation accountability by means of digital thematic public audiences (2 per year)

14.6 –II Intercouncil Forum Meeting

14.7 – II Digital Public Audiences Round

Responsible institution: Ministry of Planning, Development and Management

Supporting institutions: Ministry of Education, Government Secretariat, Institute of Applied Economic Research (IPEA), Institute for Socioeconomic Studies (Inesc), Urban Network of Sociocultural Actions, Open Knowledge Brazil, Wheels of Peace

Start date: December 2016.. End date: June 2018

Context and Objectives

The Plurennial Plan (PPA) is the main planning tool of the federal government. The commitment aims to improve and consolidate methods of social participation in the PPA. It also aims to maximize social participation during the implementation and monitoring phases of the PPA. To do this, the government will use Intercouncil Forum meetings and online public forums.

A four-year tool, the PPA outlines goals, targets, and strategies for the allocation of public resources, such as budgetary expenses. The government attempted to include civic participation in the PPA at the federal level in 2011. However, both the government and civil society felt the attempt achieved limited success.[1] The government currently executes the 2016-19 PPA, implemented during the action plan, amid an economic crisis and a reduction of expenses.[2] Therefore, civil society participation in its implementation is perceived as critical.[3]

The commitment has a high level of specificity. Key activities include enhancing digital tools for monitoring the implementation of the PPA and the Sustainable Development Goals, and for monitoring the PPA through the Intercouncil Forum and public feedback. Few details exist about the expected characteristics of the monitoring tools. However, the government specifies that the monitoring methodology will be designed during the implementation of the plan.

The commitment is mainly related to the OGP value of civic participation. It has a minor potential impact, mostly due to the commitment’s focus on preliminary steps and the existence of previous policy programs related to the deliverables (e.g., the PPA apps and the Intercouncil Forum meetings). The commitment does not specify the characteristics of the new monitoring tools. Therefore, it is not possible to determine, at the outset of the action plan, if the new participation mechanisms will be more successful than previous efforts.

Completion

The commitment has seen limited completion.

The government has drafted the monitoring methodology (milestone 14.1). It developed the draft in partnership with civil society during two meetings: one in April 2017 and another in May 2017.[4] An interview with a civil society representative (Neide de Sordi) confirmed this information. The methodology includes monitoring the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the initiatives prioritized by councils involved in the Plurennial Plan (PPA). The draft was also open for public consultation at the Participa.br portal.[5]

According to the August 2017 monitoring report, the digital monitoring tools (milestone 14.2) are under development. They include the update of two tools previously used to monitor the PPA: the PPA Mais Brasil[6] and the Integrated Planning and Budgeting System (SIOP). The PPA Mais Brasil[7] (previously PPA Cidadão) allows users to individualize their tracked programs and SDGs at the PPA. The SIOP allows users to monitor budgetary information.[8]

The government has begun establishing a communication strategy to expand access to and use of digital tools for PPA monitoring (milestone 14.3). An interviewed civil society representative (Neide de Sordi) confirmed this. The government plans to launch the tools at the Intercouncil Forum in early 2018.

The remaining milestones have not been initiated.

The action plan set a completion date of October 2017 for milestones 14.1, 14.2, and 14.4, which puts the commitment behind schedule.

Early Results (if any)

Due to the limited progress, and because the monitoring tools are not yet in use, it is too early to analyze commitment's results.

Next Steps

The IRM researcher recommends completing the commitment. The commitment constitutes a positive attempt to reach a broader range of contributors to comment on the PPA by creating monitoring tools that can be used by anyone. The commitment aims to include members from subnational partners and academia, who, in cities and states, also can engage in and monitor their local Plurennial Plans (PPAs). As next steps, the government should engage more civil society organizations to participate in the process. The PPA is a complex process that requires specialized partners from civil society to properly engage. Civil society organizations with expertise on the topic have engaged in previous PPA consultations. These organizations include the Social Observatory Network (Rede de Observatório Social), Institute for Socioeconomic Studies, and Mata Atlântica.

According to the International Budget Partnership (IBP), the Brazilian government should prioritize piloting mechanisms for the public to comment on budget matters during the budget’s implementation (such as through social audits). The organization also recommends holding legislative hearings on the audit report. IBP suggests the government provide the public with a written record of inputs received during the auditing process and how they influenced the outcome.[9]

14. Social Participation in Federal Government’s Planning Cycle

Commitment Text:

Maximize social participation on the Pluriannual Plan through the Intercouncil Forum

The commitment seeks alternatives to broaden social participation and to improve and consolidate methods of social participation for the PPA formulation and management phases, as it is considered the main tool of the Federal Government planning. Therefore, it is intended to make feasible the conduction of a PPA participatory monitoring, focusing on traversal agendas and on targets and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), using digital tools.

More specifically, the commitment was set out to achieve the following milestones:

14.1 – PPA participative monitoring methodology draft formulation, taking into account transversal agendas, and the sustainable development goals (ODS)

14.2 – Enhancement of digital tools for monitoring the implementation of PPA and ODS goals and objectives

14.3 – Establishing a communication strategy to expand the access/use of digital tools for PPA monitoring

14.4 – Presenting a PPA implementation accountability by means of Intercouncil Forum (1 per year)

14.5 – Presenting a PPA implementation accountability by means of digital thematic public audiences (2 per year)

14.6 – II Intercouncil Forum Meeting

14.7 – II Digital Public Audiences Round

Responsible institution: Ministry of Planning, Development and Management

Supporting institutions: Ministry of Education, Government Secretariat, Institute of Applied Economic Research (IPEA), Institute for Socioeconomic Studies (Inesc), Urban Network of Sociocultural Actions, Open Knowledge Brazil, Wheels of Peace

Start Date: December 2016...                                     End Date: June 2018

Commitment Aim:

The Pluriannual Plan (PPA) is the main planning tool of the federal government. The process lasts four years long, and has specific deadlines and processes. Due to the complexity involved in that, the level of civic participation during the process is low. The commitment aimed to change that, by lowering the entry level for CSOs to enroll in the process, and to engage them in all stages of the PPA process. This is set to be done by improving and consolidating methods of social participation in the PPA.

As described in the IRM Progress Report 2016–2017, the government attempted to include civic participation in the PPA at the federal level in 2011. However, both the government and civil society felt the attempt achieved limited success. The government currently executes the 2016–2019 PPA, implemented during the action plan, amid an economic crisis and a reduction of expenses. Therefore, civil society participation in its implementation is perceived as critical. Therefore, the government aims to maximize social participation during the implementation and monitoring phases of the PPA. It expects such maximization, in turn, to increase civil society oversight in the PPA processes.

Status

Midterm: Limited

The commitment saw limited completion, and its completion was behind schedule. Milestone 14.1 was completed; it involved drafting a monitoring methodology. Milestones 14.2 and 14.3 were started and involved developing digital monitoring tools and establishing a communication strategy to expand access to these tools. The remaining milestones had not been initiated. 

End of term: Substantial

Milestones 14.1–14.4 were completed, while Milestones 14.5 and 14.7 were partially completed. Milestone 14.6 was not completed. Therefore, the commitment was substantially completed.

Milestone 14.1 involved the development of a participatory methodology. The milestone, although already completed, was extended during the action plan period. The government included a detailed description of the process in the implementation monitoring report. [89] This served as a guideline to be used in the 2020–2023 Pluriannual Plan (PPA) period. It included a mapping of phases to engage civil society in the process and a strategy to invite civil society organizations (CSOs) to participate. It also included specific tasks to be performed by the government to promote civic engagement associated with key bureaucratic processes and the available opportunities for external contributions. As civil society representatives stated (Neidi Alves Dias de Sordi, Open Knowledge Brazil), a pilot of the methodology was used in the PPA 2016–2019 period as well, including 11 federal executive agencies.

Milestone 14.2 involved enhancing digital tools used for monitoring the PPA. This milestone was completed. The enhanced tools include “PPA Mais Brasil” (before known as “PPA Cidadão”), [90] which allows users to track programs and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the PPA. Open Knowledge Brazil reported the government updated “PPA Mais Brasil” and that “Meu PPA” [91] was relaunched. The tools include instructions on how to participate in the PPA monitoring process and how to monitor all activities. Citizens can select programs, objectives, goals, and initiatives within all budgeting systems to track, link, and follow expenses. The system also allows users to submit comments related to the PPA.

Milestone 14.3 involves a communication strategy to increase the use of digital tools. The government engaged in promotion of the tools. However, this promotion was restricted to mobilized CSOs and government organizations. As Neidi De Sordi, pointed out, overall participation in the commitment was limited to specialized institutions from government and civil society. The implementation monitoring report mentions several government-led events where PPA tools were promoted from January 2018 onward. [92] These include presentations of the Integrated Planning and Budgeting System (SIOP in its Portuguese acronym) [93] and the Agenda 2030 portal. [94]

Milestone 14.4 involved presenting on implementation accountability at the Intercouncil Forum. The event took place in November 2017, with a particular focus on the role of civic participation in reporting back on the process [95] and including the participation of CSOs.

Milestones 14.5 and 14.7 involved continuing the engagement of digital thematic public audiences, with two per year. These milestones were removed during implementation monitoring meetings, with the approval of civil society. In their place, it was suggested to strengthen the feedback process of the developed methodology and strengthen the monitoring of the SDGs.

Milestone 14.6 was not completed. It involved continuing the Intercouncil Forum Meeting. Which had to be postponed to after the election period, due to Electoral Law, what left the deadline for its delivery outside the action as stated in the implementation monitoring report. [96]

Did It Open Government?

Civic Participation: Outstanding

The commitment aimed to increase civic participation in the development and implementation of the Pluriannual Plan (PPA, the main planning tool of the federal government). The commitment included the consolidation of methods of social participation in the PPA, including use of technology and digital tools. The commitment’s implementation had positive feedback from both the government (Daniel Pitangueira de Avelino, from the Institute for Applied Economic Research; and Rodrigo Correa Ramiro, from the Ministry of Planning, Development, and Management) and a civil society representative (Neide Alves Dias De Sordi, from Open Knowledge). [97] Ramiro argued that the PPA and the monitoring system are key to advancing several Sustainable Development Goals, and he stated the importance of civic participation in the process.

Ramiro also noted that the introduction of a participative methodology, before starting to develop the budget planning documents, constitutes the main contribution of the commitment to civic participation. The “Meu PPA” tool, for example, allows users to define their own priorities and submit comments to policy makers. There is also an institutionalization of the results of the participation, linking the outputs of the mechanism of participation to the intercouncil (where civil society, government, and ministerial representatives participate). Neide Alves Dias De Sordi supported this, adding two more arguments: First, Sordi noted that participation of civil society in the process was structured, organized, and effective. Second, Sordi stated that participation of civil society was still restricted to a few specialized organizations.

Open Knowledge Brazil also published a piece on the outputs and review of the process. [98] The government argued that the methodology was being used in the planning of the next PPA (2020–2023). The next PPA is expected to be adopted by the next government and submitted to Congress for review by August 2019. The commitment resulted in outstanding changes in open government practices. There are verified cases of institutionalization of civic participation methodologies and methods (that include the adoption of the expertise in other state-level administrations). [99] Also, under the previous status quo, there existed no clear mechanism of participation and there was ineffective engagement of civil society organizations in the PPA process.

Carried Forward?

This commitment did not carry over into the fourth action plan. The new plan does not include a theme directly related to the Pluriannual Plan process. Nonetheless, there is evidence that the monitoring process will continue to be implemented in the next PPA period, 2020–2023. [100] The monitoring report also mentions that the digital tools will be extended to other monitoring systems, such as the Integrated Planning and Budgeting System, [101] one of the main budget tools of the public administration.