Participatory Budgeting: A Transparency Innovation Born in Brazil

You may have noticed that participatory budgeting (PB), which allows communities to directly influence how public funds are spent, is in the news again... because it’s spreading! Cities, towns, and organizations across the globe use PB to increase transparency and civic engagement.

But did you know PB originated in Porto Alegre, Brazil, in 1989? The Porto Alegre process led to significant improvements in infrastructure, healthcare and education, demonstrating its transformative potential. Between 1990 and 2008, over 120 of Brazil’s largest 250 cities adopted PB with positive results (particularly in sanitation and education) and, over time, increased transparency and improved governance and the quality of life for residents.

Since then, PB has been applied in cities in Argentina, Romania Portugal, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Japan, the US and Canada– and is part of all local government budgeting in the Dominican Republic, Bolivia, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Peru. PB is of course tailored to local conditions. For example, New York City uses it to allocate millions of dollars to various community projects—from park improvements to educational programs.

Like participatory planning more generally, participatory budgeting begins with community members discussing their priorities, followed by their proposals for solutions which are then reviewed by local government or designated committees for feasibility, with final selections voted on by the community including via online platforms, voting events, or mobile voting units.

Civil society is key to PB. Through CSOs, less formal community groups and individual citizens, civil society links the public and government, ensuring that the process is inclusive, transparent and effective. CSOs organize workshops and outreach to educate citizens on their involvement, provide platforms for input and train citizens on proposals, budgets, and project advocacy.

CSOs can also monitor project implementation and report on their findings, thereby increasing accountability and giving feedback. The recent reform of Brazil's CSO partnership agreements suggests the role of CSOs in achieving transparency is being revitalized. At the same time, CiSoRise’s platform increases the transparency of the third sector itself so it can be a stronger participant in transparency innovation.