The first of a series of 3 podcasts on Santa Catarina with the opening episode delving into PPP opportunities in the southern state of Brazil where they have ambitious plans to deploy the procurement model.

In an impromptu podcast, IJGlobal editorial director Angus Leslie Melville talks to 4 mayors from around the state… all of whom have plans to deploy PPP. Thanks once again to IJ colleague Albert Negron for his invaluable translation services.

The podcast was recorded at PPP Americas – the Inter American Development Bank conference staged last week in Panama – the IDB event that focuses on infrastructure investment across Latin America and the Caribbean.

The 4 mayors a-speaking are:

• Aquilles da Costa – mayor of the city of Peňa
• Marcos Pedro Veber – mayor of Luiz Alves
• Elcio Rogério Kuhnen – mayor of Camboriú
• Paulo Henrique Dalago Muller – mayor of Bombinhas, also rotating president for AMFRI (Associação dos Municípios da Região da Foz do Rio Itajaí (AMFRI)

Santa Catarina is a prosperous region comprising 11 municipalities where the PPP programme is administered by state-side body AMFRI, which helps promote projects across the state. There are currently a number of projects being procured at state level, but this podcast focuses on the ones that are in planning at a municipal level.

Peňa is driving ahead with 2 tourism PPP projects through a new marina to grow the role it plays as a holiday destination, and a park to the north of the city – both of which will involve 30-year operational concessions. The 2 projects are in planning with intentions to launch “pretty soon”.

Meanwhile, in Luiz Alves the drive is for more traditional PPPs in the education sector... mostly kindergarten services and primary schools. These projects – supported by IDB – are currently in planning and discussions are ongoing with the state development bank. This programme is being rolled out on a wider footing across the state.

As for Camboriú, it is pushing forward with a pilot project in water management to control flooding, create water reserves (irrigation and potable) and a degree of land reclamation. It will establish a PPI (to be launched before the IJ LatAm conference which will be hosted in Miami in March 2024) and this process will evolve into a PPP.