A paradiplomacia dos ODS: a internacionalização do Maranhão no Governo de Flávio Dino (2015-2022)

Abstract

This study seeks to analyze the role of paradiplomacy in the internationalization of the state of Maranhão, specifically during the term of former Governor Flávio Dino. In a context of regional inequality, the specific characteristics and/or needs of subnational entities are not always taken into account in state-level internationalization processes; therefore, the use of tools alternative to diplomacy (state-to-state relations) may offer solutions to eliminate or at least reduce these inequalities. Thus, the actions examined in this study demonstrate—through a descriptive qualitative methodology and bibliographic and documentary analysis—the magnitude of the results of promoting paradiplomacy in a state and how it generates benefits that extend beyond its borders. The paradiplomatic strategies implemented by the Flávio Dino administration to internationalize the state of Maranhão prompt us to reflect on the role of Brazilian states in contemporary international politics, given that paradiplomacy has proven to be a resource with broad returns but one that remains underutilized by Brazilian states, and especially on the importance of a well-established institutional framework for the full internationalization of a subnational entity