Government to shut down ten ministries

Planning Minister Nelson Barbosa announced Monday (Aug. 24) that the government is to reduce the number of ministries from 39 to 29. The move comes as part of an administrative reform presented to cabinet members during a meeting with political coordinators and President Rousseff.

By the end of September, a team of government officials will determine which ministries should be extinguished. “Our goal is to reach a target of ten. A number of possible proposals have been devised to achieve this goal. We need to hear from everyone involved. No ministry has been targeted for extinction yet,” Barbosa said.

The overhaul is also expected to make inner structural cuts to government agencies, ministries, and entities, trim secretariats and positions of trust, enhance contracts with service providers like cleaning and transport firms, sell and register government property.

The minister has not disclosed the estimated economic impact of the measures, but argued the changes are necessary for the country's new budget scenario and should boost government productivity. “A more functional public apparatus allows you to raise  government productivity. It's crucial to raise productivity in the government,” he said.

Nelson Barbosa went on to note that the administrative reform measures depend on the passing of bills, decrees, and ordinances to come into effect.

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira