Gênero e Políticas Públicas: Reflexos do PRONAF nas condições de vida das trabalhadoras rurais do Norte de Minas

Abstract

It is essential to create opportunities to integrate the less favored population to economic, political, social and cultural context of the country. Public policy through rural credit programs, such as PRONAF Woman, aim at enhancing actions, providing subsidized credit to women who attempt to contribute to better living conditions. This study aimed to verify their possible impact on the living conditions of rural workers in northern Minas Gerais. The relevance of this research is based on the opportunity of assessment of PRONAF Woman. The empirical research was conducted in Brasília de Minas (MG) and Montes Claros (MG). The research took place at the rural communities Angico de Minas, Retiro de Santo Antônio, Planalto Rural and Pau D’óleo. The interviews were conducted from September to December 2015 with women who had access to credit from 2010 to 2014, eight women in Montes Claros (Minas Gerais) and 12 women in Brasília de Minas (MG). Unstructured interviews with leaders of trade unions, EMATER technicians and unions responsible for PRONAF credit were also conducted. The research has shown that PRONAF Woman, in the perception of the interviewed farmers, was defined by the opportunity to contribute to the increase in income positively which influenced the lives of their families. It also meant the possibility of becoming more independent, valued and recognized. Although respondents recognize that the PRONAF Woman has obstacles to be overcome, ranging from disclosure until the arrival of the resource and its application, such as the excessive bureaucracy, it is a public policy to support the strengthening of family farming, providing the conditions for the idealized projects to become reality, increasing the prospects of the local and / or regional development.