On the Political Economy of Poverty Alleviation

Abstract

The management of social policy has become more complex and challenging than ever. The decentralization of public actions allied to the growing involvement of NGOs and private firms creates a widespread diversity of simultaneous actions. On the other hand, the internationalization process of economies, concomitant with contagious macroeconomic instabilities, broadens the scope of opportunities for the realization of transfers of resources and social technology between countries.

The authors would like to thank Luisa Carvalhaes Coutinho de Mello and Helen Harris for their general support and research assistance.

Marcelo Côrtes Neri is Director of the Center for Social Policies at the Instituto Brasileiro de Economia and Assistant Professor at the Escola de Pós-Graduação de Economia, both from the Fundação Getulio Vargas.

Marcelo Casal de Xerez is an Analyst at the Banco Central do Brasil.