Councilor Pedro Duarte (NOVO), reelected leader of RenovaBR for the Rio de Janeiro City Council, was invited by the United States government to participate in the prestigious International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP).
The professional exchange is aimed at rising leaders and is an opportunity to deepen knowledge about public management, transparency and the fight against corruption.
Pedro Duarte is recognized for his work in combating suspicious spending of public money and for fighting against so-called “ghost employees” in the public sector, those who receive salaries without actually working. Now, as a participant in the IVLP, he will have the chance to learn about different management models and explore how other nations have faced the challenges of public administration.
“I was invited by the American government, by the State Department, to spend three weeks studying transparency and combating corruption, and controlling public power,” said Pedro.
The program has hosted major global leaders, such as British Prime Ministers Tony Blair, Gordon Brown and Margaret Thatcher, as well as former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, and is considered one of the most influential programs in the development of emerging political leaders. Among the Brazilians who have attended the IVLP are former presidents José Sarney and Dilma Rousseff.
“The American government monitors, maps out people who make sense, invites them and brings them here. We will visit four American cities as part of the program, on the East Coast, West Coast, South and Midwest, precisely to understand the different realities of politics here. How each region deals with the issue of transparency and the fight against corruption,” he explains.
The exchange will also be an opportunity to deepen, learn and share experiences that can be adapted and implemented in Brazil. Learning about different political and economic realities in the United States can provide new ideas to strengthen public management in Rio de Janeiro and other Brazilian cities.
