International dialogical action: the decolonial potential of structuring cooperation in health promoted by Brazil

Abstract

The benefits of an empirical assessment of South-South cooperation (SSC) are currently being debated in the critical literature on this subject. This assessment could distinguish SSC practices from other cooperation practices and increase its transparency, social control, and credibility. In this sense, this paper theoretically assesses the dialogical/decolonial potential of structuring cooperation in health (SCH), a model of SSC created by Brazil; and analyses the applicability of different heuristics for international agreements and interinstitutional projects to empirically assess this potential. In theory, the SCH narrative is compatible with the decolonial literature mentioned in this paper. However, case studies from the fields of International Relations (IR) and Global Health diverge about this compatibility based on empirical observation. Nonetheless, heuristics from the field of International Law and Policy Transfer studies can help to recognize the decolonial potential inscribed in international agreements. In order to advance in the assessment of the dialogic character of SCH through projects, this paper argues that, institutionally, it is necessary to define the categories inscribed in them and make their monitoring and evaluation reports public. It concludes that the IR field needs to absorb the knowledge from the health sector and its technicians – something that does not occur in Latin America given the low interest in this sector.