Laws and regulations are one of the main levers governments can use to improve the well-being of societies, alongside fiscal or momentary policy. But governments need to ensure that laws and regulations are fit for purpose and effective in achieving goals.
The report Regulatory Governance in the Mining Sector in Brazil identifies the gaps, barriers, implementation flaws or inefficiencies that affect the regulatory framework of the mining sector in Brazil. It also assesses the governance arrangements of the National Mining Agency of Brazil (ANM). The report takes stock of the recent reforms in the mining sector in Brazil, ascertains the areas which poses the greatest challenges for the regulation in mining to perform effectively, identifies and describes the reforms that created the ANM, and documents the agency’s current regulatory practices. It assesses these against OECD principles in regulatory policy, as well as country experiences from Australia, Chile, and Mexico, and provides recommendations to continue the reform efforts.
The review was carried out under the auspices of the OECD Regulatory Policy Committee, whose mandate is to assist both members and non-members in building and strengthening capacity for regulatory quality and regulatory reform. The report was shared for comments with a wide range of stakeholders in Brazil and internationally, including authorities, experts and private representatives in the areas of mining, labour, environmental protection, and better regulation.
The information used for the preparation of this report came from five main sources: desk research conducted by the OECD Secretariat, a questionnaire answered by key stakeholders; information submitted by international experts to prepare the country case studies; a virtual fact-finding mission during October and November 2020 with Brazilian government agencies, NGOs, academics and industry associations; and a virtual policy workshop on 19 and 20 January 2021. It is to be noted that most of the work was carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic, which had repercussions on logistics and availability of stakeholders. Statistics and figures gathered as part of the desk research came predominantly from official sources, and from international organisations.
The report was reviewed by the OECD Regulatory Policy Committee on 21 April 2021, and approved and declassified by the committee on 7 May 2021. It was prepared for publication by the Secretariat.