Transition groups open dispute for government agencies and secretaries in the new Lula da Silva government

With the presentation of the first reports of the technical groups created by the transition team of the elected government, the political core of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will now have to decide on open disputes between different areas for agencies and secretaries.

According to observers, one of the main fights is to decide who will keep the National Water Agency (ANA).

The Environment wants the agency, but Regional Development and Cities are also candidates.

In the Jair Bolsonaro government, the agency is linked to the Ministry of Regional Development (MDR), which should be divided in two by the new leftist administration, with the creation of the Cities portfolio.

The agency has gained more relevance since 2020 after the approval of the Sanitation Legal Framework.

The law assigned ANA to edit national water and sewage regulation guidelines- an area historically suffering from fragmented rules.

Another overlapping request was to create a new Secretariat of Biodiversity responsible for policies for the sustainable exploitation of natural wealth.

The Environment, Industry, and Foreign Trade groups suggested the creation of structures with similar objectives. The political area will make the final decision.

MINISTER

The decision on the structure of each ministry will depend on who will be the minister in each portfolio.

In Environment, the evaluation is that the federal deputy elected Marina Silva (Rede-SP) will not be a minister “unless she wants to be”.

The sector report will cite among the suggestions to create a Climate Authority, which answers directly to the president, and Marina may be chosen for the new body.

The evaluation is that a structure above the ministries is needed to handle environmental commitments that impact other areas, such as agriculture and energy.

This would make it easier to fulfill environmental commitments assumed by the country.

Besides, there are WGs that are not interested in requesting organs for their portfolios in 2023.

This is the case of the Working Group on Indigenous Peoples, whose group said that the National Indian Foundation (Funai) would remain in the Ministry of Justice and the Special Indigenous Health Secretariat in the Ministry of Health.

The Council for the Control of Financial Activities will remain at the Central Bank.