Lula reactivates industrial policy council under criticism for exempting imports up to US$50

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) announced, this Thursday morning (6), the reactivation of the National Council for Industrial Development (CNDI), which had been deactivated for seven years. The relaunch was celebrated by the sector and by workers, but criticized for presenting a contradiction in which it encourages reindustrialization on the one hand but burdens national production on the other by freeing the importation of products worth up to US$ 50 for individuals without taxation.

The criticism was made by the president of the National Confederation of Industry (CNI), Robson Braga de Andrade, who said that the measure by the Ministry of Finance “works against small, medium and micro-industry in Brazil”. “I hope it can be reviewed by the Farm”, he added.

According to him, the exemption affects exactly the large production of Brazilian industry that costs up to R$ 250 – the value of converting the dollar into the real – such as chocolate, clothing, toys, among others. The leader defended that all purchases made abroad “regardless of the amount” be taxed, just as Brazilian businessmen themselves are already taxed on a daily basis.

Lula did not respond to the criticism.

How will the board now reactivated work?

Created in 2004, the CNDI aims to build a new industrial policy for Brazil and will be made up of 20 ministers, 21 councilors representing civil society from industrial organizations and workers and the president of the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES ), Aloizio Mercadante.

According to the government, the CNDI will carry out a study on the “missions of the industrial policy” to reverse what it classifies as a “process of early deindustrialization, where the productive structure became increasingly focused on primary sectors, with less robust between the links of the productive chains”.

Geraldo Alckmin, vice-president and minister of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services, explained that the resumption of industrial production began before the return of the council, with programs such as the one that granted tax benefits for the sale of new cars, the renewal of fleet of buses and trucks, the industry gas committee, the New PAC, which should be launched in July, among others.

Among the council’s target missions are assessing “the country’s social and development problems”, such as food and nutrition security; the prevention and treatment of disease; sustainable infrastructure, housing, sanitation and mobility; national sovereignty and defense; competitive companies in digital technologies in strategic segments; and decarbonization of industry and expansion of chains associated with energy transition and the bioeconomy.

The council will be divided into working groups that will identify bottlenecks in the production chains and design strategies and actions to boost industrial activity.

“Brazilian industry, which includes agribusiness, represents almost 80% of exports, 63% of private sector investments in innovation and technology. It is the industrial sector that makes agriculture, livestock and services competitive”, said the CNI president.

The industry representative also said that the Brazilian industrial park has an outdated production infrastructure and needs a complete renovation. According to Andrade, the machines and equipment are over 11 years old, with a lag of 38% in terms of technology and innovation.

According to Alckmin, investments of more than R$ 106 billion are projected in four years. “On the part of the government, we will create the conditions. the companion [Fernando] haddad [ministro da
Fazenda] knows that we have to provide resources for the BNDES to make the economy work”, completed Lula in a direct message to the minister, who seeks to increase the collection to reduce the deficit in public accounts this year by at least R$ 100 billion.

Lula also teased the president of Banco do Brasil, Tarciana Medeiros, that he needs to “return to making cheap credit so that people can produce”. “Caixa Econômica is the same thing”, she said.

The president also complained that the BNDES had returned R$600 billion to the Treasury in resources and dividends, and that it should have reinvested in lines of credit. And that he is in a hurry to implement his government program “in three years of office”.

During the speech, Lula also recognized that the tax reform being discussed in the Chamber of Deputies, which should be voted on this Thursday (6), is not what he would like. “It’s not what each of you wants, it’s not what Haddad wants, it’s not what I want, but that’s okay. We are not the lords of reason. We have to deal with the correlation of forces of those in the National Congress, ”he said.

first deliveries

According to the government, the reactivation of the council already brings deliveries to the sector, such as the expansion of the Brasil Mais Productivo (B+P) program, created in 2016 to offer technical consultancy with solutions to increase productivity, innovation and generate more digital transformation to companies. micro, small and medium-sized Brazilian companies, through quick, low-cost and high-impact improvements.

The reformulation of the program aims to serve around 185,000 companies by 2026, with a special focus on the industrial sector, with an investment of R$ 1.5 billion between 2023 and 2026.

Another delivery is the signing of a Technical Cooperation Agreement to promote technological development and increase the supply of machines, implements, equipment and technologies adapted to the needs of family farming.