Percalços no desenvolvimento econômico e os impactos da política nacional de desenvolvimento regional no nordeste brasileiro

Abstract

In this monograph we carried out a study on economic development in Brazil in relation to the implementation of the National Policy for Regional Development (PNDR). The overall objective of the research is to assess the unevenness of regional development, by comparing the Northeast region of Brazil to the more developed regions of the country, with regard to the criteria proposed in the PNDR. We analyze the social and economic dynamics of Northeast Brazil in relation to the Southeast and South in the decade of the 2000s, in order to measure the impacts of PNDR against its stated goals. Our intention is to conduct a first analytical analysis of PNDR in order to examine the role of public policy in stimulating regional economic development, and more specifically measure impact on improving social development indicators, especially for the Northeast region. This study is based on the following guiding research questions: Are the policy measures and actions contemplated by PNDR effective in achieving the objectives and targets set for it's implementation? Does this policy contribute effectively to improving the socio-economic scenario for the Northeast? This monograph is divided into four chapters. The first chapter is an introductory comparative essay about the concept of "economic development" and how it differs from "economic growth." In the second chapter, we deepen our discussion, situating the "regional question" in the context of public policy proposals for regional development. In the third chapter we delve into the specific object of our analysis, the National Policy for Regional Development - PNDR, examining the nature of its objectives and means of financing public policy. Here we also lay out its main policy instruments, in particular the sub-regional typology, whose purpose is to establish a frame of reference for regional inequalities. Similarly, we detail the funding sources of the PNDR. In the fourth and final chapter we use various indices to gain a quantitative approximation for more abstract concepts, in order to reveal aspects that are intrinsic to the development profile of contemporary Brazil. This allows us to evaluate the PNDR, using the indicators selected in the chapter, for different states and regions of the country. We discuss the achievements of the PNDR in terms of regional development from a critical perspective. We are interested in weaving an analysis that allows us to reveal the extent to which the PNDR has achieved the proposed objectives of leveraging regional economic development, especially in the Northeast, based on the socio-economic indicators for the region.