Brazil’s Defense Ministry issues decree permitting use of blockchain solutions for national defense

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – An ordinance signed by Minister of Defense Braga Netto, published in the Federal Gazette on Thursday (23) accredited the Brasilia-based company GoLedger to offer blockchain solutions for Strategic Defense Products (PEDs) as part of the Brazilian Armed Forces’ national security planning.

According to Normative Ordinance No. 86/GM-MD, of December 13, 2018, PEDs are products of strategic interest for national defense. They can be configured as a good, service, work or information that, “for its technological content, difficulty in obtaining or indispensability, is of strategic interest for national defense.”

Another decree published on the same date also qualifies GoLedger as a Strategic Defense Company (EED). Such a certification is indispensable for the company to be qualified to provide the services described above.

The 2018 ordinance determines that EEDs must meet the following standards: be legal entities headquartered in Brazil that do not have 2/3 of foreign owners, study and research on the topic of interest, have proven technical knowledge, and ensure production continuity in Brazil.

On its official website, GoLedger describes itself as a company specialized in developing private and permissioned blockchains on demand and based on the Linux Foundation’s Hyperledger framework.

Among the services the company offers are solutions for the digital identification of people through biometric registration, full control of supply chains through product tracking and certification, fully digital audits, and even the implementation of a fully online voting system.

GoLedger’s chief operating officer and co-founder Otavio Soares said that the company has undergone a strict evaluation process, which began in late 2018, until the accreditation became effective.

He further said that all the technology to be provided for the Ministry of Defense’s national defense strategy is ready to be immediately implemented, because the company has a “blockchain network orchestration platform fully designed by GoLedger with unique features in the world.”

GoLedger’s accreditation as an EED will help promote Brazilian blockchain technology in the rest of the world, Soares said, adding that the company’s new status does not impose restrictions on the operations of its other blockchain products and services. Solutions in the areas of business, smart contracts, among other sectors will continue to be offered by GoLedger.

GOLedger’s accreditation comes days after blockchain technology became the underlying topic of a broader debate about gun control and tracking in Brazil.

In April last year, President Jair Bolsonaro revoked an Army ordinance that established stricter controls on arms and ammunition through blockchain technology. Subsequently, the Army revoked three other ordinances along the same lines, thereby endorsing the President’s decision.

Last week, leftist political parties PDT and PSOL brought a lawsuit at the Federal Supreme Court (STF) claiming the ordinances are unconstitutional.

Justice Alexandre de Moraes granted the parties’ petition and temporarily suspended the effectiveness of the ordinances that established the National System for Tracking Products Controlled by the Army (SisNar).

The ruling was submitted to the full court for consideration of the merits, but due to a request for review by Justice Kassio Nunes Marques, all 11 lawsuits on arms decrees issued by President Bolsonaro and other government agencies have been temporarily suspended.