The visit was arranged within the framework of the technical assistance being provided by EUROsociAL, a European Union cooperation programme, to the MPS in support of the process to reform the Occupational Accident Insurance system (SAT), lending continuity to the cooperation between Brazil's MPS and the INAIL started through another European Union programme: European Union-Brazil sectoral dialogues.

Taking into account that the two countries share similar principles in terms of occupational accident concepts and the public nature of the protection action, the encounter served, on the one hand, to advance in preparing the Brazilian proposal for restructuring the Occupational Accident Insurance (SAT) measure; on the other, the INAIL highlighted the importance for the Institute of technical cooperation and cultural exchange with the Ministerio de Previdencia Social.

The working agenda allowed for a deeper exploration of the structure and operation of the social security system in Brazil, with specific attention to the different types of benefits and financing mechanisms, including Occupational Accident Insurance.

The INAIL's technical contributions made it possible to go deeper into the detail of the different aspects of Italian occupational accident coverage, including an analysis of the calculation rates, benefits, and services that make up the Italian insurance system and the rehabilitation system for victims of occupational accidents.

The Italian occupational accident insurance system was analysed not only in general terms, based on historic references and regulations, but also by illustrating in detail the system of benefits and services provided and the statistics on accident trends in the system of social, health, and rehabilitation services. Special attention was given to the criteria for calculating insurance premiums, which is one of the key points at the centre of the design of the reform being undertaken in Brazil.

Along these lines, the INAIL obtained valuable information about Brazilian regulations aimed at protection against occupational accidents, as well as a description of the social security system, and its funding mechanisms, and the socio-economic situation and demographics of the country.

The cooperation between the MPS and the INAIL will culminate in the seminar in Brasilia on 10th and 11th December 2015 for presentation of the proposal for reforming the occupational accident insurance system. The central focus of this seminar will be presentation and discussion of the proposal to reform the Brazilian occupational accident insurance system, which will be submitted in its final form to the Ministry before the end of December.