Currently there is controversy about the effect of direct foreign investment in the Brazilian agricultural sector, mainly due to the impact it has on small farmers, land use, the environment, and food security. In this context, Brazil finds itself in an even more delicate situation, since in order to remain a bulwark of the economy, Brazilian agribusiness depends heavily on public policies that directly impact its treasury. This suggests there is an indirect transfer of public resources to transnational companies involved in agribusiness production chains. This paper assesses the allocation of agricultural credits in Brazil and the market share held by Brazilian groups, vis-à-vis multinational corporations in the agribusiness supply chains. The study was carried out analyzing the three largest supply chains established in the country: soybean, corn, and cattle. Results reveal that 75% of the operating credit (crédito de custeio), which represents 60% of the total government credit in Brazil, goes directly to soybean, corn, and cattle farmers. Most of this subsidized credit budget goes to the soybean farmers, which are mostly encompassed by large farmers. Results also reveal that 76.1% of the soybean supply chain in Brazil is controlled by foreign multinational corporations. These findings suggest that resources invested in large farmers that take part in supply chains controlled by multinational foreign groups end up indirectly financing foreign companies to the detriment of local smallholder farmers and domestic agribusiness. This highlights the need for restructuring Brazilian agricultural policy in favor of family farmers and domestic agribusiness.
This study aims to assess the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic in Brazil and how it has been dealt with by both the government and in civil society. To this end, we examine the Brazilian public health system and the measures taken by the Bolsonaro Government that led to Brazil being ranked second in overall Covid-19 infections in the world through August 2020. In the absence of national leadership facing the Covid-19 health crisis, we list a set of science-based initiatives promoted by Brazilian public universities in connection with local governments, NGOs and communities as a means of mitigating the consequences and spread of the pandemic. This study is based on the consultation of institutional material published by universities summarizing their research and outreach initiatives. Results reveal that university initiatives included: 1) Alerts to society on the risks of the pandemic, with an emphasis on establishing observatories that assisted local governments and civil society in understanding the evolution of the disease, as well as in implementing measures for its prevention; 2) Direct assistance to local communities, with emphases on the addition of beds in university hospitals for treating patients with Covid-19 and on the manufacturing of personal protective equipment and; 3) Research to find solutions to prevent and treat the disease, with emphases on the development of tests for Covid-19, as well as on carrying out phase 3 vaccine trials. Through these measures, Brazilian public Federal Universities played a key role in supporting both civil society and local governments in mitigating the impacts of the pandemic.
Este artigo propõe identificar um modelo explicativo para a escrita da história de Goiás no século XIX. Este modelo implicava numa relação ambîgua em relação ao passado, revelando uma consciência histórica marcada pelo reforço do vínculo com a nação, pela negativação do período colonial e pela adoção de um critério moral para julgar o passado. Ao dialogar intensamente com a memória regional quase ao ponto de fundir-se com ela, a escrita da história de Goiás conclamava o Estado a participar da construção, não da Nação, já esboçada nos escritos do Instituto Histórico e Geográfico Brasileiro (IHGB), mas da região, na esperança de reconstruir os seus vínculos identitários.
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