Business, Government and Foreign Policy: Brazilian Construction Firms Abroad

This article analyses the interaction between Brazilian companies and government in the context of foreign policy, observing the state's support for the internationalization of large Brazilian civil construction firms. The results show that over the years these companies had privileged access to the Federal Executive, including civil service agencies. One consequence of this system of channelling demands through the Executive was to demote the Legislative branch to a secondary role. This pattern of interaction changed following the restoration of Congress's decision-making capacity, prompting the sector to diversify its areas of influence, focusing in particular on the Congress. To expand internationally, construction firms interact with the government primarily through the Executive, specifically via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Itamaraty), which provides technical and diplomatic support, and the Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Econômico, which supplies funding. The main argument of this article is that foreign policy should be examined through the relations between state and non-state actors in a multitude of decision-making arenas, taking into consideration both domestic and international factors.

本文聚焦外交政策语境下巴西企业与政府间的互动关系，考察国家对巴西大型民用建筑企业国际化进程的扶持举措。研究结果显示，多年来这类企业可优先接触联邦行政部门（含公共服务机构）。此种通过行政体系传递诉求的机制，其后果之一便是将立法部门边缘化至次要地位。此种互动模式在国会恢复决策权限后发生转变，促使该行业拓展其影响力辐射领域，尤其将重心转向国会。为拓展国际业务，建筑企业主要通过行政部门与政府开展互动，具体依托两大机构：一是提供技术与外交支持的外交部（Ministry of Foreign Affairs，伊塔马拉蒂（Itamaraty）），二是提供资金支持的巴西国家经济发展银行（Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Econômico）。本文的核心论点为：外交政策的研究应立足于多元决策场域中国家与非国家行为体间的互动关系，同时兼顾国内与国际双重影响因素。