The Institute of Development studies (IDS) has extended its Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Brazilian National School of Public Administration (ENAP). Through the partnership, we will continue to collaboratively develop and deliver short courses and postgraduate programmes for Brazilian civil servants on participatory public policy making, and policy research. ENAP are a core partner in the Brazil IDS Initiative
Regina Luna, Academic Coordinator for the Graduate Studies Program at ENAP said:
“The mission of ENAP’s professional graduate program is to be a locus for the production of research, dialogue and interaction – between academia, governments and non-governmental bodies – and to disseminate knowledge applied to the reality of Brazilian public administration and, also, of in-depth discussion on governance and development. Our partnership with IDS has provided memorable events to understand the transformation that has been taking place in the field of teaching, research and extension and seeks to produce innovations capable of offering knowledge in an agile, dense and profound way about international public policies. This is a very important partnership for us and we’re eager to increase activities so that our students can profit from all of our knowledge.”
Professor Melissa Leach, IDS Director said:
“We are delighted to renew our commitment to working with ENAP to champion evidence-based and innovative policy making in Brazil. As a leading institution for accelerating innovation in public administration and public policy, ENAP are a critical and exciting partner for us in Brazil, and provide a model for future professional development and learning collaborations in the region, as well as globally.”
Our partnership with ENAP
The MoU provides a three-year extension to our existing agreement, signed in 2018. Over the past three years, we have collaborated on a range of research and knowledge sharing activities.
We have collaboratively delivered lectures to over 70 students in ENAP’s professional masters programmes – Governance and Development, and Public Policy Monitoring and Evaluation- covering diverse governance related themes such as pro-poor policy reforms, adaptive learning, representative bureaucracies, and state accountability and responsiveness. During 2020, in response to Covid-19 closures and lockdowns, IDS Fellow Miguel Loureiro moved these lectures online to provide ENAP with two short courses on governance as a transversal theme and on policy-oriented research design. Reflecting on the teaching, Mariana Yuka, a student on the ENAP Professional Masters in Public Policy Monitoring and Evaluation, commented: ‘Dr Miguel Loureiro’s course provided critical insights and gave us leverage in discussing our research ideas and in designing research projects.’
Along with teaching and training activities, IDS has hosted ENAP researchers as Visiting Fellows and Visiting Postgraduate Researchers, and ENAP hosted IDS Fellows as Visiting Scholars. This scholar exchange is connected to our exciting joint research on what informs Brazilian public policies: IDS, ENAP, and Brazil’s Institute of Applied Economic Research (IPEA) have conducted two large-N surveys on Brazilian bureaucrats’ use of evidence to inform everyday policy, in collaboration with Brasilia’s Planning Company CODEPLAN, and the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE). This research will contribute to a greater empirical knowledge on the role of evidence in public policymaking in non-OECD countries.
The renewed agreement will enable us to continue these activities and provide further opportunities for IDS to learn from Brazilian innovative policy making and implementation experiences – learnings that in turn inform our postgraduate programme and our other collaborations with partners globally.
The partnership will also contribute to a workshop series and report on ways to strengthen the capacity of federal, state and municipal bureaucracies to respond to citizens’ needs in an inclusive way, especially after a crisis like Covid-19.
Brazil IDS Initiative
ENAP are a core partner in the Brazil IDS Initiative. The Brazil IDS Initiative provides focus in a country at the leading edge of development thinking and practice due to accelerating environmental, economic, political, and social change. It recognises that tackling challenges such as climate change, poverty and injustice requires knowledge sharing, mutual learning and collaboration inclusive of diverse perspectives within Brazil and globally. The Brazil IDS Initiative creates space where Brazilian researchers from within and outside of the country can share, learn and work with global researchers, governments, civil society and the private sector. Our partnership with ENAP is central to our aim of collaboratively strengthening development thinking and practice through policy engagement and the generation of actionable solutions.
The Brazil IDS Initiative includes a network of mutual partnerships with research, learning, teaching and policy work underway. It is part of an evolving network of IDS International Initiatives that includes China, Europe, Ghana and Pakistan. For more information please visit our Brazil IDS Initiative webpage, or contact Alex Shankland.
Partnerships for professional development and learning
The IDS-ENAP partnership is a strong example of IDS’s approach to Professional Development and Learning partnerships. We aim to facilitate learning rooted in practice through participatory and power-aware pedagogies. We take a decolonised approach by drawing on ideas and experiences from many people and places, including from our diverse learners. We prioritise learning partnerships, understanding that learning is a process involving inter-dependent relationships. As well as our programme of short courses, IDS has a history of co-developing tailored learning activities with partners from across academia, civil society, government institutions, and the private sector. For more information, please contact Leah Plati.
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