The federal government’s voluntary transfers to municipal solid waste management: a study of the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo

Abstract The aim of this study is to analyze the federal government’s voluntary transfers to programs and actions related to municipal solid waste management (MSWM), providing results of municipalities in the metropolitan region of São Paulo. The methodological strategy was the qualitative exploratory research. Secondary data were obtained from documents and official sources, especially from the Pluriannual Plans, the Transparency Portal and the Agreements Portal. It was found that the concentration of such transfers was precisely on municipalities with high and medium GDP per capita. Moreover, low efficacy was observed in the use of federal resources, which can be attributed to a limited control of the voluntary transfers and of information coordination by the implementing bodies.