AECTEA Association - Free Volunteer Opportunities in Brazil

Last Friday I decided to go to the nearby city of Jacobina and participate in an event called "Diálogos Territoriais".  Jacobina is the major city in what is called the Piemonte de Diamontina Territory, a grouping of a six Bahian cities of which Capim Grosso is the second largest.  The event exists as a way for each of the 26 Bahian territories to meet directly with representatives of the Bahian Secretary of Planning, which is responsible for creating and fulfilling three-year plans.  Perhaps indicating a level of political apathy among local civil society regarding our status in the territory and our relationship with the state government, my friend and I were the only two representatives of Capim Grosso to attend. 

The results of the meeting for those involved were a bit hazy for me.  Powerpoint presentations went up on the screen and an incredible trail of alphabet soup recording all the secretaries, coordination teams, superintendencies, assessment offices, and more that have been created at the state level in recent years to answer to citizens' demands.  Government representatives also went through details of all the significant grants, infrastucture projects, new school openings, new health agency openings, and much, much more that had happened since 2008.  One certainly got the impression that the region's economy and the expectations of it's citizens were growing, but it was hard to come away with any firm details given the huge amount of information and the lack of contextualization.

After the presentation, citizens had their chance to speak directly to the Secretary of Planning officials.  Some complained about their feeling that the state government was distant from them and did not do enough to collaborate at the municipal level (officials justly responded that they can't be expected to show up in all of the 400+ cities in Bahia, especially if no one requests government help), that agricultural training programs didn't really prepare students to work effectively in agricultural communities, and some even complained that the government didn't provide transport to the meeting.  I had to wonder about the likelyhood of any of this having a significant impact on policy.  Indeed, it seemed more likely that the real influence is going to come not from the apparently random concerns of whoever decided to show up at the meeting, but rather a small group of organizers of the event that will keep in touch with officials and offer constuctive plans and suggestions for the development of the territory.

In any case, it was an interesting experience, and I made some contacts that are certainly going to come in handy as AEC-TEA continues to develop new projects.  Volunteers that have an interest in public administration and politics should feel welcome here, as there are many open opportunities for them to take part in meetings and events to see innovative policies being put into practice, not to mention a huge economy beginning to mature.  All it takes is decent Portuguese and the will to make it through really, really long meetings.

Jon Dold, United States