Entrada na agenda, formulação e (não) implementação de uma política de saneamento: o caso do Projeto Nacional de Saneamento Rural (1985)

Abstract

The object of study of this thesis consists of an unprecedented initiative developed at the federal level during the 1980s for the planning of activities in rural sanitation in Brazil: the National Project of Rural Water Supply and Sanitation – PNSR-85. Three elements of the Project are analyzed: the agenda-setting, the formulation of the Project and its implementation. The objective was to understand the conditions that underlie its adoption, the advances achieved in the development of content for rural sanitation and the factors related to the failure of its implementation, in order to provide new knowledge for the construction of rural sanitation policy in Brazil in its current context. The empirical basis for the research consists of interviews with actors who participated in in the formulation and implementation of the Project and consultation of official public documents and scientific publications. It is adopted as theoretical reference the line of analysis of political science that highlights the central role of ideas in the construction of public policies. The Kingdon Multiple Stream Model is applied to support the analysis of the PNSR-85 agenda-setting process, content analysis to evaluate its formulation, and the Najam Protocol 5C provides the basis for the project implementation stage. The results show that the PNSR-85’s ascension to the government agenda stemmed from a conjuncture marked by intense transitions that contributed to opening a policy window. The struggle to guarantee social rights in the Brazilian re-democratization process; the activities of social movements like the grassroots public health movement; the large sanitary deficit and its consequences for public health; the joint involvement of institutions with considerable expertise like Economic and Social Planning Institute (IPEA), Public Health Special Service Foundation (FSESP) and Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) and the availability of financial resources stemming from a partnership arrangement with the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) provided a favorable environment for the elaboration of the Project. The PNSR-85 shows a detachment from the hegemonic vision of the time, strongly technical, incorporating new ideas to the sector, such as community participation, the involvement of local government, the adoption of appropriate technologies and the relevance of the education process for the development of rural sanitation. The implementation of the pilot project, however, was not able to consolidate the innovations effectively, favoring the conclusion of the infrastructure works over the actions for their sustainability. The alternation of government in 1990 and its consequent institutional and ideological changes contributed to the closing of the window and the discontinuity of the Project.