Intersectoriality and urban improvements in the outskirts of São Paulo: The case of São Miguel Paulista

Abstract

The present article analyses the challenges concerning public interventions in urban peripheries marked by multiple vulnerabilities conditions and proposes to approach the subject by the means of a complex problem, meaning it does not support a simple or linear solution to be overcome. In this context, it presents the importance for the public action to consider planning and implementation in terms of an intersectoral and continuous process. Recognizing the difficulty for the Brazilian public structure to act in an intersectoral way, the article takes some examples of initiatives held in São Miguel Paulista by Tide Setubal Foundation in order to propose that an intersectoral approach can be promoted by public regional budgeting, impact measurement and community protagonism. Commenting from these three levers, the article builds up a rationale of how to improve territorial interventions and reduce socio-spatial inequalities by recognizing the centrality of the territory in the formulation and implementation of policies.