Governance, federalism and the crisis of the National Fund for Scientific and Technological Development (FNDCT)

Abstract

This article analyzes the federalism in the governance of the FNDCT and how it relates to the crisis the fund is currently facing. It considers, as a reference, the national systems of public policies under construction in Brazil, for example, in the areas of Health, Education and Social Assistance. The official information analyzed has indicated that the adoption of federalism by the FNDCT’s governance is restricted to legal requirements of minimum percentages of resources allocated to economically less developed regions. This information allows us to raise the hypothesis that failure to observe federative principles contributed to the political and institutional fragility of the FNDCT's governance and, consequently, to the gestation of a major organizational and financial crisis faced by the FNDCT. Among the factors responsible for this crisis are the deviations from the original purposes of the resources allocated by law, increasing instability of fundraising and loss of revenue sources.

Keywords:
FNDCT; Federalism; Governance; Public policy