The state and tourism in Brazil: analysis of public policies in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Abstract

Pandemics mark periods of instability, disruptions, and complex changes in society. Today, the world is facing the pandemic of COVID-19, a disease caused by the new coronavirus. In all social dimensions, the impacts have been significant, mainly because of social isolation, a measure considered efficient to stop the spread of the disease. In Brazil, isolation was established by the government and culminated in the temporary closure of developments that provide non-essential services, in which tourism is contemplated. Therefore, the objective of this article is to discuss the role of the State in mitigating the impacts of the pandemic in the tourism sector, analyzing the public policies adopted and characteristics such as: political sphere, context, scope, content and criteria for effectiveness. It is an exploratory and descriptive research, whose methodological path consisted of searching for keywords on scientific platforms and government websites and sectorial tourism institutions, both in Brazil and worldwide. The information obtained was organized, systematized, and analyzed using the Content Analysis technique. The results show that the public policies formulated by the government are of a structural nature, with a focus on maintaining jobs and income for entrepreneurs and workers in specific segments of the production chain; conjunctural/emergency, therefore, restricted to the pandemic period; and regulatory, standardizing security and prevention protocols for COVID-19 during the economic recovery process. In general, the policies that most benefit the sector do not come from important portfolios for the activity, such as the Ministry of Tourism, but from other spheres of government.

Keywords
Coronavirus; Tourism Planning; Tourism Policy; Society and Tourism

Resumo

As pandemias marcam períodos de instabilidade, rupturas e mudanças complexas na sociedade. Hoje, o mundo enfrenta a pandemia da COVID-19, doença causada pelo novo coronavírus. Em todas as dimensões sociais, os impactos têm sido significativos, sobretudo, por causa do isolamento social, medida considerada eficiente para frear a disseminação da doença. No Brasil, o isolamento foi estabelecido pelo governo e culminou no fechamento temporário dos empreendimentos que prestam serviços não essenciais, no qual o turismo é contemplado. Logo, o objetivo deste artigo é discutir o papel do Estado na mitigação dos impactos da pandemia no setor turístico, analisando-se as políticas públicas adotadas e características como: esfera política, contexto, abrangência, conteúdo e critérios para efetivação. Trata-se de uma pesquisa exploratória e descritiva, cujo percurso metodológico consistiu na busca de palavras-chave em plataformas científicas e sites governamentais e de instituições setoriais de turismo, tanto no Brasil quanto no mundo. As informações obtidas foram organizadas, sistematizadas e analisadas empregando-se a técnica da Análise de Conteúdo. Os resultados mostram que as políticas públicas formuladas pelo governo são de caráter estrutural, com foco na manutenção de emprego e renda para empresários e trabalhadores de segmentos específicos da cadeia produtiva; conjuntural/emergencial, portanto, restritas ao período da pandemia; e regulatórias, normatizando protocolos de segurança e prevenção da COVID-19 durante o processo de retomada da economia. De modo geral, as políticas que mais beneficiam o setor não são oriundas de pastas importantes para a atividade, tal qual, o Ministério do Turismo, mas provenientes de outras esferas de atuação governamental.

Palavras-chave
Coronavírus; Planejamento Turístico; Política de Turismo; Sociedade e Turismo

Resumen

Las pandemias marcan períodos de inestabilidad, perturbaciones y cambios complejos en la sociedad. Hoy, el mundo se enfrenta a la pandemia de COVID-19, una enfermedad provocada por el nuevo coronavirus. En todas las dimensiones sociales, los impactos han sido significativos, principalmente por el aislamiento social, medida considerada eficiente para frenar la propagación de la enfermedad. En Brasil, el aislamiento fue establecido por el gobierno y culminó con el cierre temporal de desarrollos que brindan servicios no esenciales, en los que se contempla el turismo. Por tanto, el objetivo de este artículo es discutir el papel del Estado en la mitigación de los impactos de la pandemia en el sector turístico, analizando las políticas públicas adoptadas y características como: ámbito político, contexto, alcance, contenido y criterios de efectividad. Se trata de una investigación exploratoria y descriptiva, cuyo recorrido metodológico consistió en la búsqueda de palabras clave en plataformas científicas y sitios web gubernamentales e instituciones sectoriales de turismo, tanto en Brasil como en el mundo. La información obtenida fue organizada, sistematizada y analizada mediante la técnica de Análisis de Contenido. Los resultados muestran que las políticas públicas formuladas por el gobierno son de carácter estructural, con un enfoque en el mantenimiento de empleos e ingresos para empresarios y trabajadores en segmentos específicos de la cadena productiva; coyuntural/emergencia, por lo tanto, restringido al período pandémico; y protocolos regulatorios, estandarizando la seguridad y prevención de COVID-19 durante el proceso de recuperación económica. En general, las políticas que más benefician al sector no provienen de portafolios importantes para la actividad, como el Ministerio de Turismo, sino de otras esferas de gobierno.

Palabras-chave
Coronavirus; Planificación turística; Política turística; Sociedad y Turismo

1 INTRODUCTION

Epidemics and pandemics are part of the historical process and mark periods of instability, ruptures, and complex changes in society. In this context, the Plague of Athens (430 BC), the Plague of Syracuse (396 BC), the Antonine Plague (169-180 AD), the Plague of Cyprian (240-270 AD), the Plague of Justinian (542 AD), and the Black Death of the 14th century (1347-1353) are often cited (Rezende, 2009). In recent history, we can mention the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918, the Asian Flu (1957 to 1960), the Hong Kong Flu (1968 to 1972), the Russian Flu (1977 to 1978), and the pandemic virus A (H1N1) (2009) (Secretaria de Vigilância em Saúde [SVS], 2012).

Rezende (2009) argues that, in most cases, epidemics and pandemics result from the sanitary conditions in cities, poor urban planning and land use suited to their characteristics. Also, they are related to the lack of knowledge of how such infectious diseases appear and spread.

Currently, the world is going through another pandemic period, that of COVID-19, a disease caused by the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). Because of it highly contagious nature and clinical severity, on January 30, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared an international public health emergency and on March 11, the pandemic was made official (OMS, 2020).

What differentiates this pandemic from the others? The global interdependence of the economy is one of the aspects to understand the spread of the disease. The international flow of people, made possible by advances in transports and route capacity, intensified the contact with the virus (Farrel & Newman, 2020), whose transmission can occur even without symptoms (Organização Pan-Americana da Saúde [OPAS]; OMS, 2020).

Despite the efforts made by different institutions and organizations around the world, to develop measures to curb the spread of the disease and find its cure through a vaccine, the lack of structured government management plans contributes to the spread of the virus. Theoretically, COVID-19's contingency strategies provide for differentiated protocols based on the severity of the pandemic in each country, region, or city. However, one of the main health and sanitary measures adopted is social distancing and isolation.

In Brazil, isolation was instituted by the federal government (Portaria Nº 340, 2020), which established the closure of enterprises that provide services considered non-essential, including tourism activities (Decreto Nº 10.282, 2020). Furthermore, Brazil is one of the countries that closed its land borders and restricted the entry of people via air transport, except for Brazilian residents and citizens (Salcedo, Yar, & Cherelus, 2020).

Thus, tourism was one of the first sectors to suffer from the impacts of the pandemic, due to the nature of its practices, which materialize in the exchange of goods and services, as well as in the temporary displacement of people (Organização Mundial do Turismo [OMT], 2001).

The expansion of tourist activities in recent decades reinforces its importance in the socioeconomic context. Globally, the number of international tourist arrivals reached 1.5 billion in 2019, representing a growth of 4% over the previous year. The sector employed 319 million people worldwide and was responsible for opening 1 in 10 jobs (OMT, 2020).

In Brazil, tourism grew 2.2% in revenue in 2019, generating R$ 238.6 billion in the economy and generating 35,692 new jobs, an increase of 1.2% in relation to 2018 (Confederação Nacional do Comércio de Bens, Serviços e Turismo [CNC], 2020).

Tourism spending increased in 2019, even in a context of economic slowdown (OMT, 2020). This capacity for adaptation and recovery in the face of economic, political, social, and environmental vulnerabilities is one of the characteristics of tourism.

In 2016, for example, despite all the unpredictability that ruled the market: terrorist attacks (Turkey, Burkina Faso, Belgium, United States of America, France, Iraq, Germany, Pakistan, and Afghanistan), political/financial instability (impeachment of Dilma Rousseff in Brazil), pandemics (Zika virus [ZIKV], Ebola in Africa), natural disasters (India, Taiwan, Italy, United States of America, Haiti, Brazil/Rio de Janeiro [RJ], and others), the sector continued to demonstrate its potential for growth and socioeconomic development (World Economic Forum [WEF], 2017).

Therefore, the general objective of this article is to discuss the role of the State as a producer of space, central to the process of mitigating the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on tourism. Since, in 2019, this represented 8.1% of the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (World Travel & Tourism Council [WTTC], 2020).

Bearing in mind the diversity of services that make up the tourism production chain – accommodation, food and beverages, transportation, travel agencies, operators, recreation and leisure, etc. it is necessary to propose strategies that are equally distinct and that meet the demands of each branch.

2 METHODOLOGY

To achieve the stated objective, this article is characterized as an exploratory and descriptive research (Gil, 2008).

Despite the variety of data available online, there are few academic works that have addressed the tourism industry in the context of the pandemic. This finding may reflect a broader situation which is the lack of knowledge about the disease. For this reason, non-essential services, like tourism, are not detailed in research as they should be. Therefore, the aim is to deepen the investigated themes, promoting the debate on tourism and the Brazilian government's performance to mitigate the pandemic.

Initially, bibliographical and documentary surveys were carried out on the scientific platforms of SciELO, CAPES (Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel in Brazil) journals, and Google Scholar. The methodological path consisted of the search for keywords such as: tourism, pandemic, COVID-19, public policies, laws, decrees, federal government, the Brazilian government, services, provisional measures, culture, and events.

The official websites of WHO, UNWTO, Ministry of Tourism in Brazil and other institutions that are proposing studies on this topic were also consulted. Examples in Brazil are the Getúlio Vargas Foundation (FGV), the Brazilian Service of Support for Micro and Small Enterprises (SEBRAE), the National Confederation of Commerce of Goods, Services and Tourism (CNC), and the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). All the selected material was stored in a database. As the focus of the discussion is on public policies proposed by the Brazilian government during the pandemic period, the period investigated is from March 2020 to September 2020.

To maintain scientific rigor in the treatment of information, we used Content Analysis¹ (Bardin, 2011) conceptualized as:

A set of analysis techniques of the communication aiming, through systematic and objective description of the contents of the messages, to obtain indicators (quantitative or not) allowing the inference of knowledge relating to the conditions of production/reception (inferred variables) of these messages

(Bardin, 2011, p. 48).

In this sense, it was observed some steps in the study and understanding of the documents used in the construction of the article. They are:

1. Pre-analysis: Data collection can result in a large amount of material. For this reason, a thorough analysis and reading of each document is needed so that it can be recorded, and organized systematically, according to the research objectives. Thus, the aim is to make the database practical and operational, facilitating consultations, targeted readings, demarcation of main points, formulation of hypotheses, categories for analysis etc. (Bardin, 2011).

2. Material exploration: It consists of codifying the meanings of each document, which must be broadly related to the investigated theme, as well as to the research objectives and hypotheses. Exploring the material means understanding the process of its elaboration, its purpose, the theoretical basis that supports it, highlighting questions for reflection and in-depth understanding (Bardin, 2011).

3. Treatment of results, inference, and interpretation: it is when the researcher begins his/her analytical process in a critical way, synthesizing the results within the field of theoretical and methodological relevance of the research, proposing inferences and interpretations based on the objectives and hypotheses initially proposed (Bardin, 2011).

The criteria (Figure 1) supported the analysis of public policies along with other aspects, namely: a) Political sphere (Who?): Identifying which agency or institution proposes public policy; analysis of the connections with reality, that is, if what is proposed is justified and consider the real needs of those who are the target of the action; b) Context (When?): check the time when the policy was enacted, presenting, for example, emergency or not from the government; c) Content: understanding the main characteristics and purposes of public policy and its agreement with the objectives and goals proposed; and d) Criteria for effectiveness (How?): understanding of the criteria for processing through politics, whether they are operational and practical, easy to implement, and what is the sector communication and the purpose of discourse (Teixeira, 2002).

Figure 1
Categorization of public policies.

Criteria	Categories
The nature or extent of the intervention.	Structural: Seek to interfere with structural relationships, such as: income, employment, property etc.		Provisional or Emergency: Aim to alleviate a temporary, immediate situation.
As for the scope of possible benefits.	Universal: For all citizens.	Segmented: For a segment of the population, characterized by a certain factor (age, physical condition, gender etc.).		Fragmented: Aimed at social groups within each segment.
Possible impacts on the beneficiaries or on their role in social relationships.	Distributive: They aim to distribute individual benefits.	Redistribute: Aim to redistribute resources between social groups - some seeking equity, remove resources from one group to benefit others, which causes conflicts.		Regulatory: Aims to define rules and procedures governing the behavior of the actors to meet general interests of society.

• Source: Adapted from Teixeira (2002, p. 3). Organized by the author (2020).

All methods have limitations. In the case of Content Analysis, some authors mention the difficulty of researchers to present a profound significance and neutrality in their speeches (Rocha & Deusdará, 2005). To minimize this situation, since every researcher refers to a specific theoretical framework, the adoption of the concepts of Teixeira (2020) in the analytical process is adequate to the discussion held. The author approaches public policies from the government performance perspective, which is the objective of this study.

Public policies were thus categorized based on specific criteria as shown in Figure 1.

3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The rapid spread of COVID-19 in the world, whose epicenter was the region of Wuhan in China, led many countries to close their borders to tourism (Gössling, Scott, & Hall, 2020; Hall, Scott, & Gössling, 2020). An overview of early cases of the disease can be observed in Figure 2.

Figure 2
Global Distribution of cases of COVID-19 (January-March 2020).

The border restrictions brought other impacts. With a significant decrease in air travel and drastic reduction of international tourist arrivals – a reduction of 56% compared to the same period in 2019 – many ventures in the tourist production chain shut down their operations. This situation represents a loss of US$ 320 billion in tourism exports, only in the first five months of 2020 (OMT, 2020).

In Brazil, the information gathered internally by the FGV (2020) estimates that tourism GDP is expected to decrease by 38.9% in revenues compared to the year 2019. According to the study, the industry will have to grow by an average of 16.95% a year in 2022 and 2023, with GDP, respectively, R$ 303 billion and R$ 355 billion to offset this reduction.

Estimates of the CNC (2020) are consistent with the data from FGV (2020). The CNC points out that only in the first half of March 2020, tourism revenue fell by 16.7% compared to the same period in 2018. This equates to a loss of R$ 2.2 billion in revenue.

The business environment in Brazil is weakened. Data released by Sebrae (2020) on the pandemic's impact on small business show that 88% of tourist enterprises completely stopped their activities between March and April 2020. This means that 10.1 million went out of business of which 2.1 million of their own accord and 8 million by government determination (SEBRAE, 2020).

The government thus plays a major role in tourism shut down in Brazil because of the measures taken to contain COVID-19 spread in the country. It is important to mention that many protocols have been suggested by WHO (2020) that by declaring a pandemic, stressed the need for joint action of governments to implement an integrated health plan and take tougher and stronger action worldwide.

The government's role as an organization can be developed in many ways. One of the most important is public policy making. Public policies include

Guidelines, guiding principles of government action; rules and procedures for relations between government and society, mediation between actors of society and the state. They are, in this case, explicit policies, systems or formulated in documents (laws, programs, financing lines) that drive actions that normally involve the use of public resources. However, there is not always compatibility between interventions and declarations of will and actions taken. Also, non-actions, omissions should be considered as forms of political manifestation, as they represent options and guidance of those in office. Public policy represents, in its elaboration and implementation process, and especially in its results, the exercise of political power, involving the distribution and redistribution of power, the role of social conflict in decision-making, the allocation of costs and social benefits. As power is a social relationship that involves various actors with different, even contradictory, projects and interests, social and institutional mediation is necessary for achieving a consensus that legitimizes public policy and make it effective

(Teixeira, 2002, p. 2).

Even if public policy aims to promote social well-being, it is defined by the government and not by society. Therefore, it will meet demands that the government believes to be of social interest. It is noteworthy that, initially in Brazil, the pandemic was classified by the Presidency of the Republic as a “small crisis”, delaying the development of strategies more consistent with the different socioeconomic contexts in the country.

It is incumbent upon the state to represent the community and the public interest. Therefore, this condition also applies to the tourism industry. The government in its different levels – national, regional, and local – acts as the top manager of the activity, elaborating and regulating measures to maximize the development of tourism, in a sustainable way (Swarbrooke, 2000).

Today, government's performance should, above all, focus on joint actions with the Ministry of Tourism in Brazil. This, in turn, is part of the Public Health Emergency Operations Center for the new Coronavirus (COE-nCoV) of the Federal Government. Coordinated by the Ministry of Health, the COE was created to monitor and define strategies for dealing with the coronavirus crisis in Brazil.

However, a significant part of the actions carried out during the pandemic originate from other portfolios, whose benefits indirectly affect the different segments of the tourism production chain, as shown in Figure 3.

Figure 3
Summary of public policy with direct impact on the Brazilian tourism industry in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Public Policy
LAW 13,979. Political sphere: Presidency of the Republic. Context: February 6, 2020. Coverage: Universal. Content: It provides for measures to confront the public health emergency of international importance due to the coronavirus responsible for the 2019 outbreak. Criteria for effectiveness: Article III - To deal with the public health emergency of international importance due to the coronavirus the following measures, among others, may be adopted: I - isolation; II - quarantine; III – determination of compulsory: a) medical exams; b) laboratory tests; c) collecting clinical samples; d) vaccination and other preventive measures; or e) specific medical treatments; IV - study or epidemiological investigation; V - exhumation, necropsy, cremation and corpse management; VI - exceptional and temporary restriction of entry and exit from the country, according to technical and reasoned recommendation of the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa), by highways, ports, or airports; VII - requisition of goods and services from natural and legal persons, in which case the latter will be guaranteed payment of fair compensation; and VIII - exceptional and temporary authorization for imports of products subject to sanitary surveillance without registration at Anvisa, since: a) they are recorded by the foreign health authority; and b) provided by Act of the Ministry of Health in Brazil. Categories: Structural; provisional/emergency; regulatory.
ORDINANCE 15. Political sphere: Ministry of Justice and Public Security. Context: March 27, 2020. Coverage: Segmented/fragmented – Companies. Content: Determines the registration of companies on the consumidor.gov.br platform to enable the mediation via the Internet, by the National Consumer Secretariat, of consumer conflicts electronically notified. The ordinance was enacted because of COVID-19 pandemic and focused on the prevention of the worsening of consumer disputes which might not be adequately overcome because of the need to impose social isolation. In partnership with the Ministry of Justice and Public Security, the Ministry of Tourism has applied for membership of the tourism segments in the Platform. Criteria for effectiveness: They are required to register on consumidor.gov.br, companies that necessarily act in any of these groups: I - companies with national or regional operations in sectors involving public services and essential activities; II - digital service platforms on the internet dedicated to individual or collective transport passengers or delivering food, or even the promotion, offer or sale of own products or third party to the final consumer; III - economic agents listed among the two hundred companies with the most complaints in the National Defense Information Consumer of the National Secretariat of the Ministry of Consumer Justice and Public Security System (Sindec) in the year 2019. Categories: Structural; provisional/emergency; regulatory.
LAW 13,982 (REGULATED BY DECREE 10,316, of April 7, 2020). Political sphere: Presidency of the Republic and Ministry of Citizenship. Context: April 2, 2020. Coverage: Segmented/fragmented - Individual microentrepreneurs (MEI); individual Social Security taxpayer; informal worker. Content: Changes to Law 8,742, of December 7, 1993, to provide for additional parameters to characterize the situation of social vulnerability for eligibility purposes to the benefit of continued provision (BPC), and for exceptional measures of social protection to be adopted during the coping period of public health emergency of international concern arising from coronavirus (COVID-19) responsible for the 2019 outbreak, referred to Law 13,979, of February 6, 2020. Criteria for effectiveness: citizens 18 and over or mothers under 18 are eligible and meeting the following criteria: belonging to the family whose monthly income per person does not exceed half the minimum wage (R$ 522.50), or whose total family income is up to three times the minimum wage (R$ 3,135.00); and not receiving social security benefits or assistance, unemployment insurance or other federal income transfer program, except Bolsa Família; who has not received in 2018 taxable income above R$ 28,559.70. Is unemployed or employed provided that: classified as MEI; individual Social Security taxpayer; informal worker, of any kind, including intermittent inactive. Categories: Structural; provisional/emergency; regulatory; distributive.
PROVISIONAL MEASURE 936 – Converted into Law 14,020, on July 6, 2020. Political sphere: Presidency of the Republic. Context: April 2, 2020. Coverage: Segmented/fragmented – Companies and employees. Content: Establishes the Emergency Program for Maintenance of Employment and Income. It provides for additional labor measures to face the state of public calamity and public health emergency of international concern arising from coronavirus (COVID-19). Criteria for effectiveness: Received R$ 51 billion to help companies of different sizes and industries, including tourism. Thus, entrepreneurs can receive Emergency Employment Benefit Preservation and Income; the proportionate reduction of working hours and wages; and the temporary suspension of the employment contract. Categories: Structural; provisional/emergency; redistributive; regulatory.
ORDINANCE 8. Political sphere: Ministry of Justice and Public Security. Context: April 2, 2020. Coverage: Segmented – Foreigners. Content: It provides for the exceptional restriction and temporary entry of foreigners in Brazil from the countries that relates as Anvisa recommendation. Criteria for effectiveness: Article IV - The restriction provided for in this Ordinance does not apply to: I - the Brazilian, born or naturalized; II - the immigrant with prior definitive residence permit in Brazil; III - foreign professional on a mission to an international organization of service, if properly identified; IV - the foreign official accredited to the Brazilian Government; and V - the foreigner: a) spouse, partner, child, parent or Brazilian curator; b) whose entrance is specifically authorized by the Brazilian Government in view of the public interest; and c) Carrier National Migratory Registry. Categories: Provisional/emergency; regulatory.
“DON’T CANCEL, RESCHEDULE!” CAMPAIGN. Political sphere: Ministry of Tourism. Context: April 7, 2020. Coverage: segmented/fragmented – Tourists. Content: Focuses on the importance of postponing, not canceling trips, packages and scheduled cultural events, enhancing the maintenance of business and jobs in the tourism sector. Criteria for effectiveness: The Ministry of Tourism has developed a manual with information on the measures taken by the government to contain the pandemic, as well as general recommendations for prevention. The ministry also released a promotional material on cards format, videos and/or animations which can be downloaded for free and posted on websites and online social networks. Categories: Provisional/emergency; regulatory.
PROVISIONAL MEASURE 948. Political sphere: Presidency of the Republic. Context: April 8, 2020. Coverage: Segmented/fragmented – Service or business company. Content: Provides for the cancellation of services, bookings and events of tourism and culture sectors due to the state of public calamity and public health emergency of international concern due to coronavirus (COVID-19). Criteria for effectiveness: In its Article II it establishes: In the event of cancellation of services, reservations and events, including concerts and shows, the service provider or the business company will not be obliged to refund the amounts paid by the consumer, as long as they guarantee: I – rescheduling of services, reservations, and canceled events; II - the availability of credit for use or rebate on the purchase of other services, bookings and events available in the respective companies; or III - another agreement to be formalized with the consumer. It establishes that the consumer relations governed by the Provisional Measure characterize hypotheses of unforeseeable circumstances or force majeure and do not give rise to moral damages, the application of a fine or other penalty, pursuant to the provisions of Article 56 of Law 8,078, of September 11, 1990 (Consumer Protection Code). Categories: structural; provisional/emergency; regulatory.
“BRAZIL IS WAITING FOR YOU” CAMPAIGN. Political sphere: Brazilian Agency for International Tourism Promotion (Embratur). Context: April 8, 2020. Coverage: Segmented/fragmented – Foreign tourists. Content: The campaign aims to promote and support the marketing of destinations, services, and Brazilian tourism products in the international market. Criteria for effectiveness: On the website of the Ministry of Tourism has created a space for the dissemination of promotional videos produced by Brazilian tourist destinations, reinforcing messages like: “see you soon”, “we will be waiting for you” and “the pandemic will pass; tourism will not”. Categories: Provisional/emergency; regulatory.
“MUNICIPALITIES TOGETHER FOR TOURISM” CAMPAIGN. Political sphere: National Confederation of Municipalities in Brazil (CNM). Context: April 16, 2020. Coverage: Segmented/fragmented – Officials from the municipal executive, business, and related entities to the tourism sector. Content: A campaign to encourage appreciation of the domestic tourism market in the process of resumption of activities post- COVID-19 pandemic, assisting local efforts to organize themselves for this moment. Criteria for effectiveness: Preparation of a strategic plan focused on the resumption of local and national touring, as well as leisure activities and events. The campaign provides incentives for rescheduling trips and events booked before the emergence of the new coronavirus, as a contribution to local economies and to safeguard jobs. Another action is the dissemination of promotional videos of the affiliated municipalities, showing the population their main attractions and encouraging tourists to get to know the place. Categories: Provisional/emergency; regulatory.
PROVISIONAL MEASURE 963. Political sphere: Presidency of the Republic. Context: May 7, 2020. Coverage: Segmented/fragmented – Entrepreneurship in the tourism industry. Content: Aims to protect jobs of workers in companies that received funding address by this Provisional Measure. Criteria for effectiveness: Extraordinary credit line in the amount of R$ 5,000,000,000.00, to supplement resources under the National Tourism Fund in Brazil (FUNGETUR) to be used to fund the national tourism infrastructure. Categories: Provisional/emergency; distributive.
ORDINANCE 232. Political sphere: Ministry of Tourism. Context: May 14, 2020. Coverage: Segmented/fragmented - Business companies, preferably micro, medium, and small enterprises; individual entrepreneurs and companies Limited liability Individuals (EIRELI), legally constituted and established in the tourism sector. Content: Approves the general rules and application criteria for FUNGETUR resources in funding transactions. Criteria for effectiveness: It is stated in Article VII: Funding operations, dealt with in this Ordinance, must be carried out through financial agents accredited to FUNGETUR, by entering an administrative contract with the Ministry of Tourism. Categories: Provisional/emergency; distributive.
LAW 14.002. Political sphere: Presidency of the Republic. Context: May 22, 2020. Coverage: Fragmented – Embratur and its employees. Content: Transforms the Embratur in Brazilian Agency for International Tourism Promotion – stand-alone service, private, supervised by the Ministry of Tourism. Criteria for effectiveness: The Agency is responsible for planning, formulating, and implementing trade promotion of products, services, and Brazilian tourist destinations abroad, in cooperation with the federal government. Categories: Structural; provisional/emergency; regulatory.
“RESPONSIBLE TOURISM - CLEAN AND SAFE” SEAL. Political sphere: Ministry of Tourism. Context: June 4, 2020. Coverage: Segmented/fragmented - Tourism industry. Content: The program establishes good hygiene practices for 15 tourism industry segments. The initiative is part of the resumption of the Brazilian Tourism Plan, which seeks to minimize the impacts of the pandemic and to prepare the sector for a gradual return of the activities. Criteria for effectiveness: Issue of a seal certifying the safety of an establishment as regards the prevention of COVID-19. The enterprise requests certification, through the adoption of basic and specific health protocols. Interested parties should access the site of the initiative, read the guidelines under the Protocol for the segment in which it operates and be in good standing in the Registry of Tourism Service Providers (Cadastur). If so, it adheres to the self-declaration that meets the prerequisites determined and is forwarded to an area of the site where the seal can be download and printed. The seal, which is free, must be displayed within easy access to the customer and will contain a QR Code by which the tourist can see the measures taken by that undertaking and/or professional. In addition, it allows the realization of complaints in case of non-compliance, which may result in revocation of the seal. Categories: Structural; provisional/emergency; regulatory.
LAW 14,017 (ALDIR BLANC LAW). Political sphere: Presidency of the Republic. Context: June 29, 2020. Coverage: Segmented/fragmented – Cultural sector. Content: It provides for emergency actions aimed at the cultural sector to be adopted during the state of emergency recognized by Legislative Decree 6 of March 20, 2020. Criteria for effectiveness: Article II: The Union will give the states, the Federal District and the municipalities, in a lump sum in the 2020 exercise, the price of R$ 3,000,000,000.00 for implementation by local executive authorities in emergency actions to support the cultural sector through: I - emergency monthly income to cultural workers; II – the monthly subsidy for the maintenance of artistic and cultural spaces, micro and small cultural enterprises, cooperatives, institutions and community cultural organizations that had their activities interrupted due to social isolation measures; and III - notices, public calls, prizes, procurement of related goods and services to the cultural sector and other instruments for the maintenance of agents, spaces, initiatives, courses, productions, development of creative economic activities and solidarity economy, audiovisual productions, cultural events, as well as the realization of artistic and cultural activities that can be transmitted over the internet or made available through social media and other digital platforms. Categories: Provisional/emergency; redistributive.

• Source: Organized by the author (2020).

Public policies (Figure 3) to address COVID-19 are, in general:

1. Structural: focusing on maintaining employment and income for entrepreneurs and workers in specific segments in the tourism production chain. Thus, they are also classified as segmented/fragmented because beneficiaries are part of delimited groups and need to fit into the criteria laid down.

2. Provisional/emergency: the objective is to minimize the impacts of an atypical situation, being restricted to a period. In tourism, these policies can contribute to a momentary improvement of the situation. Upon ending, they interfere with the discontinuation plans and actions that focus on the sector qualification, compromising the process control and systematic monitoring of objectives and goals.

3. Regulatory: set standards that seek to adjust the socioeconomic relations with the current demands, ensuring certain rights and duties in society. In this case, the main purpose is the creation of sanitary protocols, security, and prevention of COVID-19 during the resumption of economic activities. This type of policy provides the supervision and monitoring of the sectors of interest, managing and minimizing conflicts.

The Provisional Measure 936, of April 2, 2020 and Law 14,017 of June 29, 2020, for example, reflect directly on the maintenance of income for small service providers, traders, and informal workers. In tourism, these workers are essential.

The informality rates have grown in recent years. In 2019, informal workers were 41.6% of the working population in Brazil, being more significant in the states of the North (57.5%) and Northeast (53.8%) (Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicílios Contínua [PNAD] & IBGE, 2020). This socioeconomic weakness is confirmed by the significant number of entries for receiving Aid Emergency (Law 13,982).

According to Costa and Freire (2020), regionally, the economic impact of this policy is much higher in the North and Northeast than in the rest of the country. For the authors, at first, it can be said that the poorest regions have benefited more.

On the other hand, two aspects hamper the effectiveness of the program: the rate of internet access and the availability of bank accredited network for withdrawals of funds. Thus, the most affected municipalities are located also in the North and Northeast regions, which have 35.6% and 36% of the population without internet access, respectively. This population also needs to travel to neighboring cities to receive the aid funds (Costa & Freire, 2020).

Such information reveals a lot about the tourism planning process and the proposal of public policies during the pandemic. Public policy is historically constructed, and its effectiveness permeates the idea of democratization, accessibility, and community. To Gastal and Moesch (2007, p. 4), “Public policies only exist and make sense because they are formulated to transform social realities, providing improvement in society as a whole.”

In the case of the Northeast, the measures designed to mitigate COVID-19 impacts are not adequate for the socioeconomic conditions of the population living in this part of the country, where tourism is one of the pillars of the economy. The Northeast is most sought the region by Brazilians in domestic travel, in high season and during school holidays (MTur, 2020).

In this way, it is possible to understood how the social structure is linked to tourism development and the process of resuming post-pandemic activity. Despite its importance, evident in the generation of jobs and income, the sector is not an emergency for the government. Significant policies such as the “Responsible Tourism - Clean and Safe” seal and Law 14,017, were only implemented amid pressure and manifestation by professionals in the area, months after the pandemic was made official.

At the same time, external actions of the government are implemented, such as the “Municipalities Together for Tourism” campaign, formulated by the National Confederation of Municipalities in Brazil, which is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit organization.

Teixeira (2002) explains that the increasingly active presence of civil society in public policy issues makes the public debate on the policies adopted by the government important. Society organizes itself and demands more efficiency, transparency, and democratization of benefits.

It should be noted that the government's delay or omission in the process of approving operational actions in tourism is also a governance strategy, which contributes to aggravate the existing crisis. It is also possible to consider the challenges of presenting measures that harmonize with the different realities of the sector, considering the geographic location, target audience, segment, access infrastructure, business financial availability, etc.

Adopting the “Responsible Tourism – Clean and Safe” seal, which is the first stage of the Brazilian Tourism Recovery Plan, provides for certain segments of the production chain, physical and structural adequacy of establishment as well as the training and qualification of human resources. This, at a time when most of the enterprises are temporarily closed and faced with a significant reduction in revenue and in the workforce.

Historically, tourism policies in Brazil were poorly explained and combined with other sectoral policies, which is why, in practice, they consist only in funding and tax incentives for the implementation and improvement of infrastructure (Cruz, 2001).

The COVID-19 pandemic leads to reflections on this type of governance and its impact on the country over the past few decades. Public policy must define much more than State intervention. Joint actions in a broad context are of utmost importance, thus combining political, social, environmental dimensions and whatever else is related to them (Heidemann & Salm, 2010).

Regarding tourism, in times of crisis, the combined performance of the government is even more relevant. It must consider the diversity (social, economic, environmental) and the actual needs of each destination, thus seeking the effective integration of actions in all political spheres: national, regional, and local.

4 CONCLUDING REMARKS

In the light of the foregoing reflections, it is believed that the main purpose of the article – to discuss the role of government in mitigating COVID-19 pandemic impacts on Brazilian tourism – was achieved. Similarly, the methodology used in this the study should be highlighted, especially Content Analysis. This technique, the various stages that make up its systematization, contributed to a critical view and context of public policies affecting tourism.

In Brazil, COVID-19 caused the fall in tourism GDP, deepening the business crisis and leading to company closures in all regions of the country. As the tourist practice happens in the temporary displacement of people and the exchange of goods and services, we understand the necessity to promote integrative policy actions, in which the sector is planned as a whole and not as separate parts.

In general, the analysis of the public policies suggests that these may have reduced temporarily the main negative impacts of the pandemic on the various segments that make up the production chain of tourism, especially when it comes to the maintenance of jobs and income through emergency financial aid. On the other hand, such measures can worsen government budget deficits, influencing cutting expenses in other areas, the reduction of the national GDP, increasing tax burden and inflation. All these impacts will be dissipated in the next administrations.

Thus, it is suggested that scientific investigations be continued and the academic knowledge be used in public policy generation aimed at qualifying tourism in times of pandemic and in the moment of resumption of activity. It is interesting, for example, to verify the effects of public policies already delivered, including how each segment stood before the crisis caused by the new coronavirus. In this context, the government must propose a comprehensive plan for crisis management, based on the demands of the sector and its professionals.

The COVID-19 pandemic signals a complex, unknown, and challenging moment. To date² there are 35,832,271 confirmed cases globally, 24,990,919 recovered cases, and a total of 1,050,188 deaths. In Brazil, these figures are 4,969,141 confirmed cases and 4,352,871 recovered cases, and 147,494 deaths (Ministério da Saúde, 2020). It is a serious situation, with direct repercussions in all societies around the world, whose effects are far from being overcome.

• 1
  Original publication: Bardin, L. (1977). L'analyse de contenu. Presses universitaires de France. 233 p
• 2
  Retrieved, October 7, 2020, 08:42 A.M.

• How to cite: Souza, M. C. C. (2021). The state and tourism in Brazil: analysis of public policies in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Revista Brasileira de Pesquisa em Turismo, São Paulo, 15 (1), 2137, jan./abr. http://dx.doi.org/10.7784/rbtur.v15i1.2137

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Edited by

Editor:

Glauber Eduardo de Oliveira Santos.

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  19 Mar 2021
• Date of issue
  Jan-Apr 2021

History

• Received
  27 July 2020
• Accepted
  30 Sept 2020