The State of Amazonas (Brazil) has signed an agreement with the Prelature of Lábrea that allows the financing, through the State Social Assistance Fund, of the ordinary activities of the Esperanza Center of Pauini between September 2025 and March 2026.
The fund is endowed with 100,000 Brazilian reais (almost 16,000 euros), and will be used in the ordinary operation of this socio-educational project of the Prelature of Lábrea and the Augustinian Recollects, a space for learning, civic education and healthy leisure for its beneficiaries during the part of the day that they are not in school.
A development agreement is a legal instrument that formalizes a collaboration between the public sector and civil society. In this case, the beneficiary is the Hope Center, which receives resources from the State Social Assistance Fund to carry out its social welfare activities.
This type of public-private partnership has existed since 2014 and is used for small-scale projects, such as the day-to-day operation of the Esperanza Center for six months. The main expenses covered will be payments to educators and instructors, food for the beneficiaries, and materials for use in the various workshops (crafts, music, computer skills, academic support, cooking).
The State of Amazonas, after reviewing the proposal documentation, formalizes the joint agreement through this Development Agreement. The recipient entity, the Hope Center from Pauini, is responsible for ensuring transparency and demonstrating the proper use of the funds received.
The final evaluation is based on the goals and results achieved after the application of the resources. The funds are public, but the recipient entity is empowered to organize and execute its project.
These funds come from a parliamentary amendment; that is, a member of the legislature or the executive branch requested the Social Welfare Secretariat to sign the agreement. The bill was introduced by State Representative Afonso, whose main voter base is in the municipalities of the Purus Valley.
The Pauini Hope Center and the State of Amazonas signed this agreement on November 18, 2025, and the resources come from the budget of the State Secretariat of Social Assistance and Combating Hunger of the Government of Amazonas.
The activities of the Esperanza Center between October 2025 and March 2026, inclusive, will be largely funded by this collaboration. The agreement will be managed and its proper implementation will be overseen by Larissa Karine Gomes dos Santos, a state civil servant appointed for this task.
