Rural development, National Biofuel Policy and the social inclusion myth in the Brazilian countryside

Abstract

Historically, the Brazilian State has generated various agricultural development programmes. The majority are sectoral rather than territorial programmes, preventing genuine fostering of rural development. Current public policies directed to rural areas, such as the National Program for Production and Use of Biodiesel and the Law # 11.097, which deals with the introduction of biodiesel in the national energy matrix, are evidence of the continuity of the earlier development model. Moreover, the State has maintained a policy of incentives for the agro-industrial sector of alcohol fuel production (ethanol), with the continuity of Proálcool. It is striking that since its initiation, the program was designed to benefit the owners of sugar mills who have had the political power and the organizational structure capable of directing the State apparatus serving its own interests. Therefore, this article aims to analyse the policies of biofuel (alcohol and biodiesel) associated to the Brazilian agricultural policy, showing how such policies contribute to rural development in the country. In order to achieve this goal, an analysis of the country's bio-energetic sector is carried out through the identification of its configuration and the prevailing work relations.