20 years of the creation of the Forum for Integrated and Sustainable Development of the Southern Half of Rio Grande do Sul Mesoregion: an analysis of its creation, performance and legacy within the scope of the National Policy for Regional Development

Abstract

This article addresses the National Policy for Regional Development (PNDR) from the twenty-year mark of the creation of the Forum for Integrated and Sustainable Development of the Southern Half of Rio Grande do Sul Mesoregion (Forum da Mesosul), within the scope of the Programs of Integrated and Sustainable Development of Differentiated Mesoregions, of the extinct Ministry of National Integration. The regional issue was already present in Brazilian politics since the Old Republic, acquiring renewed importance after the 1988 Federal Constitution and the resumption of the role of the federal government as a promoter of public policies from 2003 onwards. The PNDR’s purpose was to improve the quality of life of the population residing in the thirteen selected mesoregions, through forums and local projects, which would manage the actions proposed by the Programs. Thus, the present article aims to analyze the PNDR and the performance of the Mesosul Forum from a historical perspective, based on a documentary and literature review, contributing with subsidies to the debate on the resumption of a national regional development policy in Brazil. In the context of PNDR, the Mesosul Forum meant an important gain in terms of articulation of regional actors, becoming a space for debates and dissemination of projects and results. Despite these advances, the objectives of integral and sustainable development in the region were not achieved, and the Forum was disintegrated, deserving further investigation.