German-Brazilian dialogues

Brazil is Germany’s most important trading partner in South America and a strategic partner in the Southern Common Market (Mercado Común del Sur - MERCOSUR). In turn, Germany is Brazil’s most important trading partner in Europe. However, the business environment and regulatory framework in Brazil pose challenges that potentially create barriers to competitiveness and restrict trade. According to the World Bank, Brazil ranks 124th out of 190 economies on the ease of doing business index. Often referred to as the custo Brasil (the ‘Brazil cost’), such structural burdens include challenges relating to taxation, customs bureaucracy and quality infrastructure.

Within the Global Project QuaIity Infrastructure (GPQI), Brazil and Germany have engaged in a technical and political dialogue on quality infrastructure since 2017. In a continuous cooperation, they reduce technical barriers to trade and enhance product safety. The Brazilian Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services (Ministério do Desenvolvimento, Industría, Comério e Serviços - MDIC) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Klimaschutz - BMWK) have set up the Brazilian-German Working Group on Quality Infrastructure. The group involves the relevant ministries, regulators, public agencies, accreditation and standards bodies, industry associations and companies. Promoting green economy initiatives, both countries use the Working Group to join forces in de-carbonizing industrial value chains, building upon Brazil’s renewable energy matrix and global advances in greener technologies.

GPQI fosters a systemic approach to QI in Brazil. It moreover focuses on open communication standards for Industrie 4.0 as well as QI for circular economy and the digitalisation of market surveillance.