cometadata/datacite-titles-descriptions-related-identifiers huggingface dataset:
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291872.v1
title: Avoiding the poverty pandemic: the potential of the Bolsa Família program and the Single Registry for Social Programs to face the COVID-19 pandemic

description: Abstract This study suggests three measures to enhance the potential of the Bolsa Família program and Single Registry for Social Protection (Cadastro Único) as responses to the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. We propose to: (i) enroll all eligible households already in the Cadastro Único in the Bolsa Família program, and postpone all verification and recertification processes that could result in benefit cuts; (ii) adjust the eligibility thresholds of Bolsa Família and the value of the benefits; and (iii) grant an emergency benefit, for at least six months, to all families enrolled in the Single Registry (regardless of whether they are Bolsa Família beneficiaries or not) whose per capita income is below half a minimum wage. The combination of these measures results in 56 different scenarios. Based on the data from the Single Registry and the Bolsa Família payroll, the study estimates the target audience and costs. Given the unprecedented magnitude of these measures, the study also emphasizes possible institutional and operational difficulties for their implementation. A combination of these measures is recommended, with a duration of at least six months.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291870.v1
title: The Food Acquisition Program (PAA) as a strategy to face the challenges of COVID-19

description: Abstract This article analyzed the Food Acquisition Program (PAA) as a tool to mitigate the economic and social impacts of COVID-19 in Brazil. The study conducted investment projections and analyzed the conditions to operate the program during the pandemic, adopting quantitative-qualitative analysis. As for the quantitative approach, the study worked with projections of public policy investments; the qualitative policy was carried out with unstructured interviews with key actors. The results showed that, in an optimal scenario, the rise of investment could provide a wide capillarization of the benefits of the program. The results point out that the PAA is strategic to face the negative effects of COVID-19 because it helps family farming products reach the consumers, structuring production chains, facilitating access to new markets, and inducing economic dynamics, in addition to combating hunger and extreme poverty of families living in vulnerability. Also, the research found that the program is in operational conditions and adapted to the reality of the pandemic, following protocols established by health authorities. Therefore, the PAA can minimize health and economic crises for the most vulnerable population. It addresses the demands of the organized civil society and recommendations from national and international organizations specialized in reducing the economic and social impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291868.v1
title: Homeless population and COVID-19

description: Abstract The objective of this work is to propose practical strategies to support the homeless population during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil. It adopts qualitative research, based on interviews with professionals in the field, analysis of information collected on a national news online portal, and analysis of articles, research reports and information documents from other countries. The findings allow suggesting strategies for local governments, particularly regarding social assistance and equipment to support homeless people in Brazil. The results, although partial, include a comparative panorama that allows strategies that are unprecedented in Brazil. We also highlight some issues that need to be considered by the federal, state, and local governments in view of the urgency posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291862.v1
title: Socioeconomic vulnerability in the face of COVID-19 in municipalities of Ceará

description: Abstract The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have caused serious socioeconomic impacts, exposing the vulnerability of Brazilian states and municipalities. In a broad sense, vulnerability is related to social and economic susceptibility to potential risks or losses caused by extreme events. In this context, this article identifies the municipalities’ socioeconomic vulnerability in the State of Ceará, the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Northeast of Brazil. This exploratory-quantitative study adopted secondary data from government databases of public access. The socioeconomic vulnerability of the municipalities was assessed dynamically, based on a mathematical model to forecast the number of cases of COVID-19 applied to the city of Wuhan, China. The vulnerability indicators were calculated under two trajectories: production value and the number of employed persons, considering municipal characteristics such as demographic density, local mobility, and human development index. In the case of the state of Ceará, the findings show a series of demographic, social and economic determinants that aggravate the impacts of the crisis. The vulnerability indicators constructed in this research can be used as a basis for decisions by municipal and state governments in the chronology of economic openings by sectors, municipalities, and regions.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291860.v1
title: The Brazilian sanitation sector’s response to COVID-19

description: Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has evidenced the essentiality of water more prominently. Service providers were responsible for maintaining drinking water supply to the population to maintain good hygiene habits and control the spread of the virus. However, the challenge for providers was guaranteeing the service would not be affected, either by employees falling ill or by users unable to pay for the service provision. Public administration adopted several measures to respond in the short term to this challenge. The actions most frequently observed were the restriction of in-person services, payment exemption for vulnerable users, and suspension of procedures against non-payment. The measures may have unbalanced the accounts of the service providers, leaving them in a situation of instability that, in principle, should be sustained until the end of the pandemic, when the regulators will conduct the process to re-establishing the financial balance. The regulators are and will be the main actors in minimizing the impacts on providers and in mediating future negotiations. This article provides recommendations to regulators on how to address the imbalances caused by the pandemic in future processes. Regulators will have to issue clear guidelines regarding the procedures that providers will adopt to rebalance their accounts. Consideration should be given at this time to making contractual targets more flexible.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291856.v1
title: From biological viruses to economic viruses: a vaccine for microenterprises in Brazil

description: Abstract Facing the threat of disruption to the productive sector as a result of social distancing measures imposed in Brazil, and considering that micro and small enterprises are those hardest struck, this study aims to formulate a government emergency aid proposal for this segment. It presents a brief analysis of the federal government’s current actions and proposes a measure capable of filling the gaps observed. Finally, the study offers an estimation of costs for the National Treasury if adopting the proposed measure.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291854.v1
title: Incomplete contracts for bus service during the COVID-19 pandemic

description: Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic poses serious challenges for the public bus service. The fall in demand due to social distancing measures, the intensification of hygiene procedures, the acquisition of personal protective equipment, and restrictions on vehicle capacity threaten the financial viability of Brazilian public transportation. The COVID-19 pandemic may be characterized as a force majeure event, giving rise to an economic-financial balancing of public bus service contracts. However, this solution must be built by the public administration and transport companies to guarantee the interests and needs of both parties. Therefore, this article offers strategies to continue operating the service during the pandemic and to achieve economic and financial equilibrium protecting the public interest. Overcoming the uncertainties and consequences caused by the pandemic requires relationships of trust and mutual support between the private sector (operators) and government.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291852.v1
title: Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on funding basic education

description: Abstract This article aims to estimate the impact of lower tax revenues on the funding of basic education, in the context of the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Three hypothetical scenarios of lowering tax revenues are estimated and analyzed, along with their effects on the investment in education in the states and municipalities, per-pupil and overall, using a methodology that combines data on tax revenues, mandatory allocation in education, and enrollment numbers. In the most optimistic scenario, the reduction of 7% in the net tax revenues would lead to a decrease in investment in basic education of more than R$ 16.6 billion. The monthly per-pupil expenditure, which in 2018 was R$ 460 on average, could drop between 4.1% and 26.9% depending on which scenario is considered. This probable reduction in revenues requires urgent measures to attenuate the deepening of educational inequalities, converging to the transference of federal funds to sub-national governments. Finally, we highlight the economic virtue of investing in education, when considering the capillarity of education, and its character of intensive investment in personnel.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291850.v1
title: The pandemic and the labor market in Brazil

description: Abstrac The COVID-19 pandemic is a global public health problem that has given new dynamics to the world economy. The rapid spread of the disease and the use of social distancing as a form of prevention exposed the social and urban inequalities of capitalist cities. In Brazil, as in other countries, social distancing has promoted rapid changes in the labor market with more severe impacts for 37.3 million people living in the informal sector, as they do not have rights to, for example, the severance pay indemnity fund (FGTS) and unemployment benefit. According to the International Labour Organization, the first layoffs are occurring among those who live off precarious work, such as: outsourced workers, clerks, waiters, kitchen workers, day laborers, baggage handlers, and cleaners. We show a brief synthesis of the consequences that the health crisis has brought to Brazilian workers and propose coping measures that are not limited to emergency aid. The recovery and creation of occupations will depend, among other factors, on the resumption of spending on social and economic programs that were able to reduce social inequalities at the beginning of this century, such as PAC-favelas; Minha Casa, Minha Vida Program; Bolsa Família Program and the FAT Employment and Income Generation Program. These programs can and must be expanded to bring the economy back to growth in the long run.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291848.v1
title: Fear of death and polarization: political consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic

description: Abstract Humanity has always been tormented with the end of existence. On some occasions, such as the current COVID-19 pandemic, this affliction is pronounced. To what extent can fear of death alter individuals’ political perceptions and beliefs? It is in this context of uncertainties and fears that we investigate how Brazilian society has been evaluating its leaders, especially concerning the policy of social distancing. The COVID-19 pandemic changed the axes of political polarization. On the one hand, governors, mayors, and legislators are concerned about the risks of a collapse of the health system. On the other, President Jair Bolsonaro focused primarily on the negative economic consequences of the pandemic. Through an opinion poll, we identified that “fear of death” diminished the ideological polarization that has existed in Brazil since Jair Bolsonaro’s election. Contrary to what many expected, voters who identified themselves as right-wing and center-right - supposedly, the core of Bolsonaro’s voters - refused to follow the president’s recommendation of relaxing social distancing policies and considered his performance inappropriate during the pandemic. We also show that different income levels did not influence this change in behavior.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291846.v1
title: Civil society mobilization in coping with the effects of COVID-19 in Brazil

description: Abstract This text discusses the role of civil society in public action to face the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil. Based on a pragmatic approach, the study examines the collective actions promoted by civil society actors in Brazil, highlighting the characteristics, scope, and limits in the governance of this crisis. The study uses documental analysis to observe the recent mobilization of civil society in the country and field research to explore the reality of the city of Florianópolis. The results offer an overview of the performance of “invisible networks” of civil society actors, pointing out the challenges and outcomes of their actions. The findings suggest the need for further studies exploring the role, perspectives, and dilemmas of civil society in the production of “experimentalist governance” in response to the numerous challenges posed by the pandemic at the local level.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291844.v1
title: The collaboration between governments and civil society organizations in response to emergency situations

description: Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic is an example of a large-scale emergency that defies public administration. There is a variety of large-scale emergency events, and the government is responsible for responding to such situations. Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) can contribute to a fast and appropriate response to these emergencies. This article discusses the characteristics of CSOs that qualify them to contribute to the government’s emergency responses. We also analyze possible collaborative arrangements between governments and CSOs.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291842.v1
title: Regulatory agencies in response to the COVID-19 crisis

description: Abstract This article aims to examine the responses of federal regulatory agencies to the public health crisis - the COVID-19 pandemic. We adhere to the understanding that an empirical evaluation of the patterns of response manifested by the agencies during the pandemic plays an important role in the improvement of public function. First, because it aids the task of adapting regulatory activities more quickly to the needs of the current situation. Secondly, because the context of exceptionality created by the pandemic highlights essential features of the regulatory activity in itself: its conditions of execution and functionalities, limitations and potentialities, and, most of all, its importance for minimizing losses in scenarios of structural instability. The data used in this study was gathered from the Official Gazette Diário Oficial da União (DOU) and the websites of the eleven regulatory federal agencies. In our analysis, we only selected measures with an impact on the regulated sector. We found significant heterogeneity in the number of agency responses, partly related to sectorial differences, but mostly arising from asymmetries of institutional capability among these bodies. We also found heterogeneity of content in the responses given by agencies to similar regulatory problems, which suggests the existence of failures in regulatory coordination in urgent need of a solution.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291840.v1
title: Smart cities and the pandemic: digital technologies on the urban management of Brazilian cities

description: Abstract COVID-19 has been affecting the way of life in cities. The pandemic curve grows significantly in some countries, such as Brazil, requiring rapid responses from the public administration. This research, conducted in April 2020, characterizes the use of digital tools in adapting Brazilian cities to the pandemic in light of the concept of smart cities, presenting a panorama of the current situation. The results indicated that 83% of the cities surveyed used digital tools in measures to fight the pandemic, such as increasing social distancing and adapting public services. The concentration of initiatives tends to follow the geographic distribution of confirmed cases, i.e., digital tools are more used in places where the pandemic curve is more accentuated. Also, cities that are historically more open to innovation demonstrated a heavier use of digital technologies and strategies to fight the pandemic. Finally, the results indicate that the largest Brazilian cities follow, at some level, the trends of digital optimization observed worldwide.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291838.v1
title: The public administration’s ‘engine room’ in the fight against COVID-19

description: Abstract The fight against the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil requires integrated and coordinated strategies and actions involving different public policy agencies in the local, state, and federal governments, delivering essential services and emergency programs. Such services rely on public administration’s functional areas, designated in this work as the “engine room.” The study uses this particular intra-organizational dimension to describe and analyze the administrative functions in the adjustment of the death care services in a municipality, as the final link in the fight against the SARS-CoV-2. The empirical locus is the death care service of São Paulo, Brazil. The service was chosen because it is a public sector monopoly and São Paulo because of the municipality’s size - one of the biggest in the world. The research adopted documentary analysis and interviews with local public managers, examining the back office of public administration focusing on finance, human resources, processes and information technology, procurement and contracts, logistics and operations, and communication and marketing. The study discusses the mechanisms of public organizations in the context of the pandemic. It leads to a reflection on the key points of such a health crisis considering different realities, recognizing the limits of analyzing an ongoing phenomenon.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291836.v1
title: The COVID-19 outbreak and the municipal administration responses: resource munificence, social vulnerability, and the effectiveness of public actions

description: Abstract Facing the unprecedented situation of the COVID-19 pandemic, public officials at the municipality-level have no clear benchmarks or tested policies. In this situation, decision-making becomes a controversial process. This article provides insights for public agents in the Brazilian municipalities to deal with the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. We analyzed the actions taken by city halls of the 52 Brazilian municipalities at least thirty days since the first confirmed case of COVID-19. We used a fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) to identify the combinations of contextual factors and public actions that reduced COVID-19 transmission during the critical initial stage. The empirical results show three main paths to guide policy-making: (1) a plural collaboration path involving public and private sectors, operating in a fragile health system; (2) a public action path providing aid programs through intense collaboration inside public bureaucracy; and (3) a resource-based path relying on a well-structured health system.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291834.v1
title: Better safe than sorry: leadership sensemaking in the time of COVID-19

description: Abstract Government leaders who want to promote a collective response to disrupting events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, need to foster a shared understanding of the crisis through effective communication. However, the tone and content of communication varies across and within countries and led to conflicting results in terms of collective sensemaking. To understand how government leaders’ messages shape emotional and cognitive responses of citizens, we designed a 2x2 vignette experiment in which we manipulate the framing (pessimistic vs. optimistic) and content of the message (specific vs. general) delivered by a political leader. Results from 436 participants showed that while the tone of leader’s messages has significant implications for the levels of anxiety and evaluation of the government’s truthfulness and its overall response to the crisis, the content of the leader’s message matters less. Furthermore, these effects were particularly experienced by women and left-leaning participants. Overall, our results highlight the importance of the leader’s communication strategies on influencing the public’s emotional reactions, as well as the perceptions of government effectiveness in dealing with the crisis.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291832.v1
title: Pandemics and communication: an experimental assessment

description: Abstract Communication is a key factor in containing a pandemic. Fragmented information may affect people’s perceptions and behaviors, especially in times of governmental miscommunication, potentially jeopardizing efforts aimed at containing the spread of the disease. To test whether and how people have been sensitive to broken information during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil, we performed a randomized survey experiment on a sample of 571 respondents. We found that more pessimistic or more optimistic fragmented messages about the pandemic have no overall significant average effect on perceptions and planned behavior of the respondents. The exploratory analyses showed that particular sociodemographic groups are more sensitive to these fragmented messages. While less educated people react to more pessimistic messages with an increased likelihood to intensify prevention measures, people aged 60 or older - the high-risk group for COVID-19 complications - react to more optimistic messages with a reduced probability to intensify prevention measures. Besides providing insights to the public administration literature on disaster management, the results reinforce the need for governments to consistently centralize communication efforts to guarantee that people are equipped with complete and accurate information to form their perceptions and adequate their behaviors towards a health crisis.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14291830.v1
title: Predictors of the intention to maintain social distancing

description: Abstract This research aimed to develop an Intention to Maintain Social Distancing Scale (IMSDS) based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). The model establishes that the variables attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control are predictors of the intention to maintain social distancing (IMSD). The methodological design was an online survey with non-probabilistic sampling. The survey included 786 Brazilian participants, mostly residents of the southern region of the country. The TBP variables explained 85% of the IMSD variation: subjective norms (β = 0.69), attitudes (β = 0.24) and perceived behavioral control (β = 0.06). These results provide evidence of what are the underlying beliefs that influence the IMSD. This evidence is relevant to public and private organizations in the process of developing strategies to promote and engage the population in adopting the behavior of “maintaining social distancing” in Brazil. In the discussions, the practical implications are presented, pointing out the limitations of the research and the possibilities for future studies on IMSD.