The Commission's presence in Brazil dates from October 1952, when it signed a partnership agreement with the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) to create a Joint Study Group. The ECLAC-BNDES Economic Development Centre, regarded as the first formal representation of ECLAC in Brazil, was established in September 1960 in Rio de Janeiro. In the late 1960s, BNDES withdrew from the programme and, in 1968, the ECLAC-ILPES Regional Office was set up, also in Rio de Janeiro. The office was relocated to Brasilia in 1978 following an agreement between ECLAC, the Government of Brazil and the Institute of Applied Economic Research (IPEA).
Besides the agreement with IPEA, the Brazil office has since maintained technical cooperation agreements on development issues with federal government agencies, notably the Ministry of Environment (in relation to sustainable development studies) and the Ministry of Science and Technology. It has also signed agreements with cooperation agencies and the governments of other countries.
The office also publicizes the courses offered by ECLAC at its headquarters in Chile and in other countries, coordinates the technical training and capacity-building courses offered in Brazil, and circulates information about the Commission’s activities and publications. The present Chief of the ECLAC office in Brazil is Carlos Mussi.