19. The Effectiveness of Participatory Budgeting in Brazil: Accomplishments and Potential Improvements

Abstract

In the 1990s, the Workers’ Party (PT) of Brazil introduced an idea that changed democracy in the country and eventually in the world. The idea of Participatory Budgeting (PB) was first put into practice in Porto Alegre, a city in the state of Rio Grande do Sul (RS). After its successes in Porto Alegre, the system spread throughout Brazil, and eventually to the rest of the world. Its spread started with the recognition of its success by the United Nations. The idea, then, spread to Latin America, Africa, and eventually Europe and the other continents of the world (Gomez, Insua, & Alfaro, 2016). In 2012, Latin America and Europe were the regions of the world with the largest numbers of PB systems with at least 511 and 174 municipalities with PB in Latin America and Europe, respectively (Helena & Lüchmann, 2014). The spread and development of different PB systems was also accompanied by criticisms about its theory and practice. Critics have evaluated the democratic nature of PB and the institutions that might be working as obstacles. Thus, the goal of this article is to evaluate the effectiveness of the PB system in Brazil since it was implemented in the 1990s; this will be made by discussing the successes, obstacles, and potential reforms of PB in Brazilian municipalities.