Brazil - AI Strategy Amendment (4.979/2021)

Overview

Portaria MCTI nº 4.979/2021 is a ministerial ordinance that amends the Annex of Portaria MCTI nº 4.617/2021, which instituted the Estratégia Brasileira de Inteligência Artificial (EBIA). The Ordinance is short in form: it replaces the previous Annex with a revised Annex (the EBIA reference document) and declares that it enters into force on the date of its publication in the Diário Oficial da União (D.O.U.). The formal text of the Ordinance and the full revised Annex (the EBIA document) are published and made available by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovations; official online copies are provided by MCTI on its website. For the primary published Ordinance text see the MCTI publication page and for the EBIA Annex document see the official EBIA reference PDF maintained on the MCTI site: Portaria MCTI nº 4.979, 13 July 2021 (MCTI page) and EBIA — reference document (PDF). The EBIA Annex functions as the national strategic framework that steers public action, research priorities, funding lines and cross-sector coordination on AI in Brazil.

Definitions

Key terms used in the ordinance and its Annex are drawn from the EBIA reference document and mirror internationally recognized definitions. "EBIA" denotes the Brazilian Artificial Intelligence Strategy; "Annex" refers to the strategy text attached to Portaria 4.617 and replaced by Portaria 4.979; "MCTI" indicates the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovations, the issuing authority. The strategy uses common AI policy terminology such as "algorithmic system," "artificial intelligence," "stakeholders," "governance," "data governance," "transparency," "robustness," "explainability," "accountability," and "ethical principles." These definitions are operationalized in the Annex to provide clarity for public agencies and partners implementing the strategy, aligning with language used in international instruments such as the OECD AI Principles referenced in the EBIA text. The EBIA document itself contains context and explanatory sections that elaborate the use of these terms for Brazil's policy context: EBIA strategy page.

Governance and Institutional Framework

The Ordinance reaffirms that governance of the EBIA is exercised through MCTI leadership in coordination with other federal bodies, research institutions and stakeholders. The EBIA Annex sets out a multi-stakeholder governance approach: MCTI is positioned as the primary steward but implementation relies on horizontal coordination with other ministries (e.g., education, health, economy), federal research institutes (e.g., CNPq, FINEP, national research centers), universities, civil society and industry representatives. The EBIA emphasizes institutional arrangements for monitoring, periodic review and the definition of responsibilities for executing specific strategic actions. The strategy also contemplates the creation or nomination of governance bodies, working groups, technical committees and a public repository for actions and progress tracking. The MCTI maintains an official EBIA repository page where the Annex, associated action lists and governance documents (including numbers of actions and the internal regimentation) are published and updated: EBIA repository (MCTI). These institutional mechanisms are intended to coordinate funding, regulatory guidance, training and international cooperation, while enabling a whole-of-government strategy alignment.

Key Focus Areas

The EBIA Annex, as adopted by Portaria 4.979, organizes Brazil's AI policy objectives along thematic axes that reflect the lifecycle of AI policymaking: (1) Research, development and innovation — promoting basic and applied R&D, public investment, and collaborations between academia and industry; (2) Capacity building and education — developing human capital, training programs, and awareness to expand an AI-skilled workforce and digital literacy; (3) Data governance and infrastructure — improving access to quality public data, creating data-sharing frameworks, and strengthening digital infrastructure; (4) Ethics, rights and regulation — embedding human-centric values, protecting fundamental rights, and encouraging responsible use of AI systems; (5) Governance, evaluation and institutional coordination — establishing monitoring mechanisms, indicators, and governance structures for follow-through; and (6) International cooperation and alignment — aligning with international standards, exchanging best practices and engaging with fora such as the OECD. The EBIA also highlights cross-cutting priorities: transparency and explainability of automated systems, robustness and cybersecurity, equity and inclusion, and accountability mechanisms. A public listing of the strategy's actions and thematic organization is maintained by MCTI and accompanied by an English summary of EBIA for international audiences: EBIA — reference document (PDF).

Implementation Framework

Implementation under the EBIA Annex is envisioned as programmatic and iterative rather than prescriptive hard law. The Annex describes strategic actions, responsible entities and suggested time horizons; however, concrete implementation depends on subsequent acts (action plans, public calls for proposals, budgetary allocations and inter-agency agreements). The MCTI maintains an inventory of strategic actions with nominated leads and collaborating partners; the Repository page offers access to the "Ações Estratégicas" listing, which documents individual measures (the public repository contains a consolidated list often referenced as the 73 strategic actions in MCTI materials). The Annex encourages public bodies to mainstream EBIA principles into procurement, research funding criteria, regulatory pilot projects and public sector use of AI. The Ordinance effect is administrative: it gives the revised Annex formal status so federal agencies may use it as an official reference when designing or updating programs, grants and capacity-building initiatives that aim to implement the EBIA axes and priorities. For implementation resources and program lists see the MCTI EBIA pages: MCTI — AI pages.

Monitoring and Evaluation

The EBIA Annex emphasizes monitoring, measurement and transparency. The Annex contemplates the development of indicators, periodic reporting and maintenance of a public action repository to allow stakeholders to track progress. MCTI is responsible for coordinating monitoring efforts and publishing updates on implementation status. Monitoring is expected to combine qualitative and quantitative indicators — including numbers of funded projects, training programs delivered, data infrastructure milestones, and policy or regulatory outputs. The Annex also recommends the formation of technical groups to evaluate effectiveness and advise on revisions. While Portaria 4.979 only replaces the Annex text, the strategy document itself sets the expectation that periodic reviews and updated action plans will be produced by MCTI in conjunction with partners and that results be made publicly available on the EBIA repository.

Penalties, Liability, and Appeals

Portaria 4.979 is a strategic instrument that updates the EBIA Annex and does not itself establish new administrative sanctions, criminal penalties or private-law liability regimes. The Ordinance contains no enforcement or sanctioning provisions; instead, it operates as policy guidance and an administrative reference. Where applicable, enforcement, liability and appeals are governed by other instruments (sectoral laws, administrative regulations, consumer protection law, data protection law — notably the Brazilian General Data Protection Law (LGPD) — and sector-specific regulatory frameworks). Therefore, expected legal consequences for non-compliance with actions set out in the EBIA depend on downstream regulatory instruments, contractual terms in public funding, and applicable statutory obligations under Brazilian law.

Relationship to Other Instruments

Portaria 4.979 expressly operates to amend the Annex of Portaria 4.617/2021 and is grounded on existing executive-level legal frameworks. The Ordinance cites relevant decrees and ministerial authorities (for example, the EBIA documents reference Decree No. 10.463/2020 and existing internal ministerial instruments). The EBIA also intentionally aligns with Brazil's broader science, technology and innovation policy and with sectoral rules (health, education, finance) where AI adoption intersects with regulated services. The MCTI EBIA repository pages provide links to the foundational Portaria 4.617/2021 and related governance documents so implementers can trace the chain of administrative acts and supporting materials: EBIA repository and related acts.

International Alignment

The EBIA Annex and the updated reference material published under Portaria 4.979 emphasize alignment with international normative instruments and standards, in particular the OECD AI Principles which Brazil has endorsed. The strategy explicitly references international cooperation, knowledge exchange, and the use of global best practices for ethics, transparency and accountability in AI systems. EBIA promotes interoperability with international initiatives, participation in multilateral forums, and alignment with standards bodies to facilitate research collaboration, trade and cross-border regulatory cooperation. The MCTI also provides an English summary of EBIA to support international engagement and to attract collaboration: EBIA — English summary and repository.

Implementation Timeline

Sources and References