Prioridades que não priorizam: Descompasso entre objetivos e aplicação de recursos dos fundos constitucionais levam à concentração do crédito no setor rural

The report analyzes the Constitutional Financing Funds (FCFs) in Brazil's North, Northeast, and Center-West regions, finding that while these funds aim to support small producers and reduce regional inequalities, loose eligibility criteria have effectively neutralized these priorities. The authors demonstrate that the definition of 'priority' beneficiaries has expanded over time, allowing larger producers to access subsidized credit and leading to a concentration of resources in a small number of municipalities. Despite this, the FCFs remain a critical source of financing for the most underdeveloped regions where alternative credit is unavailable.

• The eligibility criteria for priority beneficiaries and locations are so broad that they fail to provide real prioritization. For instance, 99.96% of agricultural establishments in the FCF regions qualify as priority beneficiaries because their annual gross income is below the R$ 16 million threshold for small-medium producers.
• Spatial prioritization is similarly ineffective, as priority municipalities cover the vast majority of the funds' areas: 97% of the Northeast Fund (FNE), 90% of the North Fund (FNO), and 51% of the Center-West Fund (FCO).
• Priority definitions have expanded over time, increasing access for larger producers. A key example occurred in 2011 when the priority threshold for small producers was raised from R$ 300,000 to R$ 2.4 million, and a new 'small-medium' class was created for those earning up to R$ 16 million.
• Resources are increasingly concentrated among high-value contracts and a small number of municipalities. Between the 2013/14 and 2020/21 agricultural years, the top 5% of municipalities receiving FCF rural credit concentrated an average of 41% of FNE resources, 36% of FNO resources, and 24% of FCO resources.
• FCFs remain essential for the most underdeveloped regions, particularly in the North and Northeast, where they are often the primary source of rural credit. Between 2013/14 and 2020/21, FCFs were the main source of rural credit for 78% of FNE municipalities and 59% of FNO municipalities, compared to only 9% in the FCO region.
• There is a strong correlation between high dependence on FCFs and low socio-economic development. Municipalities where FCFs account for more than 75% of total rural credit exhibit lower Municipal Human Development Index (IDHM) scores, higher illiteracy rates, and lower average monthly nominal income.

APA

Pereira, L., & Souza, P. Z. (2022). Prioridades que não priorizam: Descompasso entre objetivos e aplicação de recursos dos fundos constitucionais levam à concentração do crédito no setor rural. Climate Policy Initiative. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/INS-FCFs-PT-1.pdf

Chicago

Pereira, Leila, and Priscila Z. Souza. Prioridades que não priorizam: Descompasso entre objetivos e aplicação de recursos dos fundos constitucionais levam à concentração do crédito no setor rural. Climate Policy Initiative, 2022. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/INS-FCFs-PT-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Pereira |first1=Leila |last2=Souza |first2=Priscila Z. |title=Prioridades que não priorizam: Descompasso entre objetivos e aplicação de recursos dos fundos constitucionais levam à concentração do crédito no setor rural |publisher=Climate Policy Initiative |date=March 2022 |url=https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/INS-FCFs-PT-1.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{pereira2022prioridades, author = {Pereira, Leila and Souza, Priscila Z.}, title = {{Prioridades que não priorizam: Descompasso entre objetivos e aplicação de recursos dos fundos constitucionais levam à concentração do crédito no setor rural}}, institution = {Climate Policy Initiative}, year = {2022}, month = mar, url = {https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/INS-FCFs-PT-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }