Social security reforms and their implications for the Caribbean

Includes bibliography

Macro- and microeconomic aspects of the reforms

Includes bibliography

Capital formation in the context of Brazil's economic reforms in the nineties: a sectorial approach

Includes bibliography

Distributive effects of Brazilian structural reforms

Includes bibliography

Tax policy in Latin America: Assessment and guidelines for a second generation of reforms

Includes bibliography

Outcome of the agrarian reform in Brazil during the last two decades

The agrarian reform allows for land redistribution and gives rural workers the opportunity to develop their life projects, rescuing the dignity of a historically excluded population. The conquest of the land carries significances that span from the rescue of citizenship to the improvement of living conditions due to the acquisition of goods, products and services. It is pointed out that in Brazil there still exists a marked concentration of large-landed estates. In this sense, this work had the objective of analyzing the Brazilian agrarian reform process during the last two decades. In this period the country had three Presidents, two of them elected with the support of the Rural Landless Workers Movement, increasing the expectations in relation to the fulfillment of the agrarian reform. The advances in the policies of rural settlements are notable; however, the structure of large-land estates remains unaltered. In the last two years (2011 and 2012) the number of settled families, as well as the number of settlements accomplished, were the worst since 2006. The priority of the current government is the eradication of extreme poverty and, in this sense, the agrarian reform becomes an essential policy to contribute to such goal, since with the distribution of the property of the land also diminishes the concentration of wealth.

Formação e educação popular no campo entre a Igreja Católica e o Estado (1954-1964)

In Brazil, the Catholic Church has an important role in the construction of citizenship, education and training the rural lower classes of the population. Studied in this article, this participation and contribution in the 60s, by highlighting the strong weighting would take the issue of land reform. The Catholic Church was a major player in unionization campaigns and basic education and suffered great tensions and internal conflicts that divide between those who sought the "liberation of the oppressed" and those who fought for reforms without changing the "social order". This paper recovers the trajectory of implementation of various programs of Catholic union formation and foundation of unions. We use historical methodology and retrieve the voice of the authors through interviews with trade unionists, lawyers, church authorities and militants popular.

Evaluation of the relationship between education and sustainability in peasant movements: The experience of the National Education Program in Agrarian Reform

Brazil is one of the largest agricultural producers in the world. However, its agrarian composition is based on two markedly different production models, particularly in relation to sustainability: a peasant family agriculture, which plays an important role in food production for domestic consumption and advocates agro-ecological practises; and agribusiness, the politically and economically hegemonic model that produces commodities for export based on monoculture and intensive use of pesticides. Therefore, in order to create the means to develop peasant lands, social movements and peasants have engaged themselves politically and defended an education model grounded in sustainable practises of production and social organisation. Taking this into account, the main purpose of this paper is to analyse and assess the Brazilian experience of integration between education and sustainability, in the National Education Program in Agrarian Reform (PRONERA). To accomplish this aim, a survey with a semi-structured questionnaire was carried out among teachers, students, monitors, and coordinators of the course offered by PRONERA. The surveys showed that the courses are promoting the concepts of sustainability among peasants. However, many adjustments need to be taken into consideration during the planning process for the next courses offered by PRONERA.

Employment Effects of Product and Labour Market Reforms: Are There Synergies?

This article investigates the effect of product market liberalisation on employment allowing for interactions between policies and institutions in product and labour markets. Using panel data for OECD countries over the period 19802002, we present evidence that product market deregulation is more effective at the margin when labour market regulation is high. The data also suggest that product market liberalisation may promote employment-enhancing labour market reforms.

Explaining standing order reforms in the Camera dei Deputati during the liberal age

How might the continuous changes in the standing orders of the Camera dei Deputati between 1861 and 1922 be explained? To answer this question, the text investigates the political events associated with standing order reforms. Two results are emphasized. On the one hand, and contrary to common views, the study shows that the reforms were not casual or episodic, but resulted from different sets of political pressure, internal or external to the parliamentary ambit. This fact, on the other hand, draws attention to the need to go deeper into the question of the institutional evolution of the liberal parliament, chiefly with regard to relations among institutional actors.