Urban Brazil: Visions, Afflictions, and Governance Lessons By Iva ...

There are very few studies focusing on social capital in Brazil, but the results indicate that existing levels are low. In one of these studies, Marcelo Costa Ferreira has identified the existence of both “a predatory civic culture” and an “associational alienation,” in Brazil, suggesting that the participation of individuals in community groups and neighborhood associations occurs mainly as a means for obtaining personal benefits. The same can be said about labor unions’ affiliation.¹³ Therefore, and following Putnam’s reasoning, the dismal level of social capital in Brazil may well help us to understand why the country faces governance problems. However how, in this context, can we explain better governance strategies?

Rather than disregarding other explanations, my focus on public entrepreneurs is intended to increase the analytical scope for understanding public policy formation and governance strategies in cities in the developing world. In analyzing the process of introducing innovation into the public sector, the public entrepreneurship model can be used to evaluate governments and their ability to act under a variety of circumstances, including budgetary constraints and the demands posed by intense urbanization.¹⁴

Finally, a few words about city size must be mentioned, keeping in mind that governing large urban spaces is not a trivial task. The degree to which the quality of governance strategies and government performance is determined by the size of population is a question that remains open. In fact, by singling out size as the sole factor influencing the quality of government action, we run the risk of minimizing the extent of positive outcomes in large cities and serious governance problems in smaller ones.