Read the text below in order to answer questions
16 to 18:
A new budget system
In 1989, the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre
came up with a radical solution to its major
problems of unaccountability and extreme poverty:
a participative budget. For the last decade, the
people of the city have been deciding how the
budget for public works should be allocated.
Neighbourhood groups propose projects, and
people from community groups and non-profit
organisations who have been elected by their
neighbours, decide which projects will go ahead.
In some cases, the community delegates also
oversee implementation of the final projects. This
has had the triple result of avoiding corruption and
mishandling funds, improving concrete matters on
the ground, and increasing democratic
participation in the process by a huge amount.