Denmark supports Brazil’s innovation in public policy
26-11-24
Reforming a country’s public sector is a major challenge. Through the Danish embassy in Brazil and Danida Fellowship Centre, Denmark is contributing to the extensive efforts of the Brazilian government to introduce new and innovative public policies.
By Vibeke Quaade
Brazil, the largest country in South America and the world’s fifth largest nation, encompasses 26 states, a federal capital area, 5,570 municipalities, and a population of over 217 million. Governing a country of this size and with such a huge population is no mean feat. So, what does a new government do when it finds that reforms and changes are needed to fulfil its promises to re-industrialise the country, promote social and economic justice, and embrace a greener economy?
An innovative solution is to establish a new Ministry of Management and Innovation in Public Services and complement it with a Behavioural and Insight Unit, known by its acronym CINCO, designed to spearhead the implementation of the reforms.
“What the Brazilian government did was to establish a brand new ministry and introduce a Behavioural and Insight Unit called CINCO,” explains Terkel Borg, who oversees the Danish-Brazilian cooperation on intellectual property rights, innovation and digital government in his capacity as sector counsellor at the Danish Embassy in Brazil.
How Denmark is part of the story
What many may not realise, however, is that Denmark is part of that story through the contribution made by the Danish Embassy in Brazil and Danida Fellowship Centre.
“Denmark enjoys a robust collaboration with Brazil, thanks in part to the sector cooperation on innovation in the public sector between our two countries that began in 2015,” Borg notes. “And Danida Fellowship Centre’s role in the sector collaboration should not be underestimated.”
Terkel Borg took up the assignment as sector counsellor in 2020. The previous years of collaboration between the two countries had laid a solid foundation for further partnership. Since 2016, around 250 civil servants and experts from the public sector have participated in Danida Fellowship Centre’s learning programmes. They have returned to Brazil with new knowledge and skills in, for example, digital government, strategic management, project management and many other topics. In addition, at the government’s request, around 40 participants have taken part in behavioural insight learning programmes.
Launching the new Behavioural Insight Unit, CINCO
Shortly after the Lula government took office in 2023, the Danish Embassy was invited to a meeting with Brazilian officials. During this meeting, the Brazilian government outlined its clear vision for how they wanted the sector cooperation with Denmark to evolve; they wanted it to focus particularly on the new Ministry of Management and Innovation in Public Services and CINCO.
CINCO, the new unit, was officially launched on 22 September 2023. It was placed under the supervision of the Director of Innovation in the Ministry of Management and Innovation in Public Services, Claudia Martinelli Wehbe.
“Mainstreaming the use of behavioural science integrates our strategy to transform the Brazilian public sector and raise its effectiveness. Denmark has played a crucial role in this effort by providing valuable insights and practical knowledge. Indeed, Danish experience in innovative public management has been inspiring Brazil in our longstanding collaboration since 2015,” explains Claudia Martinelli Wehbe.
“And now, with the launch of our behavioural science unit, CINCO, the support of the Danish government has enabled us to further accelerate our efforts to embed behavioural insights into policy design and advance the transformation of our public services,” she says.
Watch video with Director Claudia Martinelli Wehbe
Testing, trying, and adapting for behavioural policy success
“When our dialogue with CINCO began, we quickly agreed that the task ahead for the new unit was monumental. Experiences from other countries have shown that such units can risk becoming swamped and not have the time for genuinely applying behavioural science in their societies. Brazil wanted to find a different balance,” Borg says.
For CINCO to fulfil its function, it was therefore vital that the new unit not only had a deep understanding of behavioural insight theories but also knew how to apply them in practice. This meant conducting necessary experiments and truly grasping how to identify, design and intervene in problem contexts. All this is now the focus of the ongoing cooperation.
In practice, behavioural science theory is very complicated to apply. For instance, if the goal were to increase hand sanitiser usage in hospitals, the initial theory might suggest strategic signage placement. However, the real challenge would lie in the rigorous process of observation and adaptation: starting with a hypothesis, observing and measuring the results, and then trying again by moving the signage, altering the message, and observing again. This iterative process is both demanding and time-consuming but essential for achieving meaningful outcomes.
“We all agreed that the unit had to be hands on and willing to test and try, and test and try again, to truly be able to lead the way in the needed reforms regardless of the sector or area it operated in,” Borg emphasises.
Danida Fellowship Centre: Crucial for the Sector Cooperation
In May 2024, Denmark offered a masterclass for Brazilian alumni of previous courses at Danida Fellowship Centre to support CINCO’s efforts to promote the use of behavioural science in public policy. The sessions were all grounded in the principles of mutual learning and action-oriented learning that are central to Danida Fellowship Centre’s approach.
Read more about the masterclass in the article Behavioral insights and nudging as an approach for public sector transformation
“We hope to continue our collaboration with the Brazilian government as they pursue public sector reforms, and we will indeed maintain our partnership with Danida Fellowship Centre to develop and implement learning initiatives that are crucial for this sector cooperation,” says Terkel Borg.
“We view these initiatives as essential tools in our bilateral sector partnerships.”
Watch the YouTube playlist
Collaboration between Denmark and Brazil on innovation in public policy