On January 17, the president of the Brazilian Federal Court of Accounts (TCU), Minister Bruno Dantas, signed a letter of intent with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). The document expands the scope of joint efforts and formalizes a solid partnership that has been evolving for nearly four years through projects carried out by the Innovation Laboratory (coLAB-i) of TCU’s Capacity Development Institute (ISC).  

Dantas expressed his appreciation for the partnership to the IDB representative in Brazil, Morgan Doyle. “The IDB has been fundamental in encouraging us to think outside the box of the Brazilian administration and incorporate international best practices. Contributing to the development of public administration is part of our constitutional mission, and we are honored to have partners like you who inspire us to continue evolving”, said the minister.   

Doyle, on his end, commended the cooperative efforts with coLAB-i in promoting public procurement policies of innovation. “I would like to highlight TCU’s initiatives on innovation. You not only study and make recommendations on it but also put it into practice. This is admirable. We truly appreciate TCU’s insights into promoting innovation within the public sector. Even though your primary focus is control, you are always striving to go beyond what is possible”, praised Doyle.  

The representative of the IDB also expressed his intention to disseminate at the regional level the initiatives undertaken by TCU at the federal level. Alongside Morgan Doyle, Michael Hennessey, the IDB’s specialist in Science and Information Technology, and Eduardo Henrique, the bank’s specialist in Innovation, were also present at the meeting. 

Since 2020, the IDB and the TCU have been cooperating in several initiatives. Here are some significant examples of this partnership:

• INOVAMOS (2020): a project that proposes a model for audit bodies to support innovation procurement, both in Brazil and Latin America. The project mapped 29 solutions, and one of the outcomes was the development of the CPIN platform. Additionally, a preliminary design for the Innovation Procurement Journey was carried out, with further details to be developed by the TCU in the following year; 

• Course on Technology Outsourcing (2021): the online course was developed by the TCU and the coLAB-I, in partnership with the IDB. It is currently available on ISC’s course portfolio and on the EVG/ENAP platform; 

• IV Ibero-American Forum on Public Procurement of Innovation (2022): the forum is held annually under the coordination of the IDB. In the 2022 edition hosted in Brazil, the coLAB-i provided support to the organization, contributing with theme proposals and presenters;  

• Regulatory Sandbox (2023): the IDB participated in the coLAB-i's workshops throughout the year, the last session being a collaborative effort where the IDB shared Canada’s experience on the topic.