Speaker: Anna Carolina Marco (University of São Paulo)

Contrary to the global trend towards the public takeover of water and sanitation services, Brazil is recently pursuing the privatisation of the sector as a means of addressing persistent service deficits. Since 2020, a nationwide regulatory restructuring and regionalisation process has been underway, significantly expanding opportunities for private sector participation. This process has largely been driven by the expectation that it would accelerate investment through financial markets while simultaneously improving public finances and reducing the role of the state. In this presentation, I show that although standardising regulatory measures has improved the design of concession contracts and other forms of delegated service provision, the economic and financial viability of many concessions still depends fundamentally on public resources. And even more importantly, evidence suggests that new arrangements are failing to address the very deficits that were invoked to justify them. Drawing on a case study of São Paulo, I argue that reliance on public funding and the obscuring of territorial inequalities were not unforeseen shortcomings of the new model, but accepted conditions from the outset. Both were integral to making the model viable and attracting financialised private capital.

Speaker’s bio:
Anna Carolina Marco examines how policy design, regulation, and financialisation contribute to the reproduction of urban inequality in Brazil. Her work focuses on uncovering socio-environmental conflicts surrounding access to housing and urban services. She is currently investigating unequal access to water and sanitation in São Paulo. She is a PhD Candidate at the Faculty of Architecture, Urban Planning and Design of the University of São Paulo (FAU-USP) and holds a degree in Architecture and Urban Planning from the same institution. She has previously worked for international cooperation agencies such as GIZ and ICLEI, and for the São Paulo City Council. She is currently a visiting researcher at the School of Business and Management/QMUL, with a fellowship from the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP).

This is a hybrid event. For online participation, please follow the link below: