One of the main rationales for establishing the WWP was to facilitate and support knowledge transfer on operational aspects of Brazilian social protection system based on demands from policy makers and technicians from around the globe. However, given the breadth and complexity of Brazil’s social protection system, where should the WWP start? To answer that question, the WWP team surveyed participants of three important South-South learning events that took place in Brazil in the beginning of 2014. The surveys gathered feedback and ideas on how to enhance the effectiveness of South-South cooperation with Brazil on social protection. The responses will help guide the focus of the initial activities of the WWP. Over time, we intend to use additional surveys, the WWP website and other means to continue to get feedback from you – the users of the WWP – to ensure that the Initiative addresses most relevant topics and uses the most effective learning tools. So, please get in touch if you have ideas or suggestions.

The first of the three events in which the survey was applied was a special meeting of the  African Community of Practice (CoP) on Cash and Conditional Cash Transfers held in Fortaleza in March. The event was attended by 38 African countries aiming to share lessons and experiences as they seek to set CTs and CCTs at the core of their strategy to enhance productive inclusion and human capital. The second event was the South-South Learning Forum on Social Protection and Labor (SSLF), organized once a year by the World Bank. This fifth edition of the Forum took place in Rio de Janeiro in March and gathered 230 practitioners from 70 developing countries from every region, who shared experiences on how to design and administer SPL systems. Finally, the third event was the International Seminar on Social Development Policies organized by the Brazilian Ministry of Social Development and Fight against Hunger (MDS) in Brasília in April. The Seminar aimed to showcase Brazilian programs in the area of income transfer, food security, nutrition and social assistance and was attended by delegations from 18 countries.

At the end of each of the three events, participants were asked to answer a questionnaire on specifictopics they would like to learn more about, as well as on which tools WWP could develop to facilitate knowledge exchange on such topics. Even though each event gathered participants from different groups of countries and regions, facing different challenges, a consistent picture of interests and demands emerged from the surveys.

On the question of which topics concerning the Brazil social protection experience participants would like to have more in-depth knowledge on, the Unified Registry was the most voted in all three events, followed by Bolsa Família Conditionalities and Federal Coordination (see graphic 1).

Graphic 1

(221 respondents from CoP Africa, SSLF and International Seminar)

Participants in two of the events (South-South Learning Forum and International Seminar) were also asked about which learning tools or materials they would prefer. Again, similar results emerged from surveys in different events, with participants most interested in short videos, case studies and online courses (see graphic 2).

Graphic 2

(194 respondents from SSLF and International Seminar)

Based on the feedback gathered from these surveys, WWP will initially focus its efforts on specific topics concerning the Unified Registry, hoping to address the needs and preferences of social program managers and technicians from around the globe.

During the coming months WWP will make available on its website a number of materials detailing the Brazilian Unified Registry implementation experience. Some of the envisaged products are:

  • History of Unified Registry implementation, with main reforms, improvements and lessons learned in the last decade;
  • Registration Form translated to English and Spanish, as well as explanation on main concepts included in the Form and a step-by-step how-to build a Registration Form;
  • Material that shows how to qualify professionals to operate the Unified Registry and update beneficiaries’ information;
  • Short notes on aspects related to the overall registration system, as well as to the coordination mechanism amongst all institutions involved;
  • Short videos on registration processes (including the Active Search) and other topics related to the Unified Registry;
  • List of Frequent Asked Questions (FAQs) on the Unified Registry.

The next upcoming topics to be addressed by WWP will be Bolsa Família Conditionalities and Federal Coordination issues, still according to these survey results. If you have other topics of interest, or any suggestions on other learning tools that could be made available by WWP, please send us your feedback.