The Bioeconomy in The Lula Administration: Regulatory And Institutional Advances

The bioeconomy sector has emerged as a new production paradigm, gaining significant attention both in Brazil and globally. It is also a central focus of a forward-looking G20 initiative introduced by the third Lula administration.

While Brazil has been working for years to better regulate the bioeconomy and develop a broad legal framework, substantial progress has been made since President Lula da Silva took office again in 2023. One of the first key actions was the creation of the National Secretariat of Bioeconomy (Secretaria Nacional de Bioeconomia – SNB), within the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (Ministério do Meio Ambiente e Mudança do Clima – MMA). The Secretariat’s mission is to promote economic growth while ensuring biodiversity conservation and fostering social justice.

In addition, the federal government established the National Bioeconomy Strategy to coordinate and implement public policies that foster the bioeconomy, integrating sustainable economic and social practices with biodiversity protection, and ensuring food, climate, and energy security. This specific strategy signals the Lula administration’s commitment to advancing the bioeconomy as a new production model.

Researchers from the Climate Policy Initiative/Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (CPI/PUC-RIO) have mapped and analyzed Brazil’s regulatory frameworks and governance structure related to the bioeconomy, focusing on the period after 2023. Their study builds on the 2022 report titled “Bioeconomy in the Amazon: Conceptual, Regulatory, and Institutional Analysis,” as a foundation to assess the changes under the new Lula government, the regulatory progress achieved, the reception of bioeconomy within the new ministerial structure, and how the National Bioeconomy Strategy integrates diverse bioeconomy perspectives.

This publication offers a comprehensive overview of the bioeconomy in Brazil, highlighting a critical moment of political and strategic change. As Brazil moves toward the development of the National Bioeconomy Development Plan (PNDBIO), this plan will serve as the primary tool to implement the National Bioeconomy Strategy. It presents a significant opportunity to advance the Strategy’s goals by ensuring better coordination among government agencies. This will enable the bioeconomy to become a key driver of sustainable development, incorporating traditional knowledge, promoting new industrial models, accelerating the clean energy transition, and generating wealth with socio-economic inclusion.