The State of Paraná, Brazil, has used the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a guiding framework for public policymaking since 2016. More recently, Paraná has made private sector engagement a strategic priority to accelerate progress on sustainable development. The state promotes public-private collaboration through sector-specific programmes that combine technical assistance, financing incentives and co-ordination mechanisms, notably in agriculture, renewable energy and territorial planning, alongside public-private partnerships (PPPs) and investment attraction instruments. The recent creation of a Public-Private Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Committee seeks to better align public and private actions on sustainable development and address persistent barriers including limited awareness of sustainability among smaller firms and municipalities, capacity constraints in PPP project preparation, and the lack of an overarching ESG legislation to guide activities. This policy paper provides guidance on how Paraná can further leverage public-private collaboration to tackle its sustainable development challenges in areas such as health, climate change, inequality and safety, while reducing structural barriers to access finance and helping de-risk sustainable investments.
