Building and maintaining a good relationship with legislators in the three spheres of Government — federal, state and municipal levels — is strategic for Embrapa, which, as a public research institution, has a social role to fulfill. 

The Corporation not only generates products, services and technological solutions for the agricultural sector, but it also produces and holds specialized knowledge and information that can contribute to the creation of public policies. Informing legislators is a way to make this contribution effective.
 
Lines of action and interlocution channels:

  • Budgetary legislative process

Embrapa's budget is established every year by Brazil's Annual Budget Law (LOA). Sanctioned by the President of the Republic, the LOA defines the amount allocated to the corporation by the Federal Government. As Embrapa is a public corporation that depends on the National Treasury, this is its main source of funds. During the discussion about the Project for the Annual Budget Law (PLOA), the National Congress of Brazil organizes public hearings to listen to the Federal Government, as well as sectoral entities and institutions. 

Embrapa constantly discusses issues related to the Corporation's budget with the Legislative Branch.  

The proposition of parliamentary amendments by Senators, Deputies and State Parliamentary Groups makes it possible to increase Embrapa's budget. For that purpose, the heads of Embrapa’s Units, under coordination of the Advisory Service for Institutional and Government Relations (ARIG), liaise with congresspeople

Embrapa releases reports on the application of the funds allocated to the institution by parliamentary amendments. These funds are allocated to projects and investments that are distributed throughout the Brazilian territory and meet the Corporation's priorities agenda considering the impacts of the performance of these centers, which can be on a local, regional or national level. 

Report on the implementation of parliamentary amendments

 

  • Formulation of public policies and regulatory frameworks
 
  • Public hearings

Governments and parliaments have increasingly been requesting technical information from research institutions that can inform their decisions. In response to these requests, Embrapa participates in public hearings in the National Congress of Brazil and in Legislative Assemblies of states and cities, where it is represented by staff researchers and analysts.

This is one of the ways the corporation effectively contributes to creating public policy.

Embrapa seeks to meet all technical demands that are addressed to it and strives to participate in public meetings whenever it is invited. The Corporation permanently monitors the works of the National Congress to identify opportunities to inform the legislative process through the sharing of the knowledge that is generated by its research activities.

The Corporation's specialists also contribute by making Technical Notes on topics of interest to agricultural research, where considerations and suggestions for improvement to public policies are presented. After validation by Embrapa's Board of Directors, these Notes constitute institutional statements and are sent to the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (Mapa) and then to the Government Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic.

After the presented suggestions are approved in all instances, they can form the government's position on a particular legislative proposition and inform the work of legislators.

Through participation in public hearings and elaboration of Technical Notes, in the last ten years, Embrapa has provided technical information that contributed to creating public policies such as ICLFS and the Agricultural Climate Risk Zoning (ZARC).

 

  • Legislative propositions

 

  • Technical Notes - institutional positioning

 

  • Thematic committees

 

  • Parliamentary fronts