Sep 4, 2020

 The Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) will support the restoration and modernization of the Museu do Ipiranga, located in the city of São Paulo.  Besides renovating its physical infrastructure, the project will adapt the building to accessibility and fire prevention and fire fighting standards. The museum will have its area practically doubled, being expanded by almost 7,000 square meters, increasing to more than 15,000 square meters. 

With the support, the museum, which has been closed since 2013, will be reopened to public visitation on September 7, 2022, in celebration of the bicentenary of Brazil’s Independence. The building was built on the same site of the proclamation made by Dom Pedro I, according to an event told and depicted in the museum. With the reopening of the museum completely renovated in September 2022, the expectation is to restart service with 500,000 visitors per year, a number that will be increased until reaching 700,000 annual visitors in 2026.

BNDES’s support to the museum, which is administered by the  University of São Paulo Support Foundation (FUSP), will be of R$ 25 million. This amount represents 14% of the global investment, which is R$ 178 million.  Noteworthy is the effort undertaken by USP in raising private funds from several companies, in partnership with the São Paulo State Secretariat of Culture. BNDES is the largest individual supporter of the project, through the Cultural Fund, with nonreimbursable support. That is, once the entire project is executed, there will be no need for financial discharge of the amount paid by the Bank.

The project includes restoration initiatives (both in the building’s decoration and original structures and materials), fire prevention and safety, renovation of hydraulic and electrical networks, increased protection of the collections on display, among other interventions.

The increase in the number of visitors will generate higher box office revenue. In addition, new spaces can be rented for events, seminars and other activities. The rental of the café and the store, associated with the number of sponsors and supporters, should complement the initiatives to increase the Museum’s revenue, strengthening its financial sustainability.

Museu do Ipiranga – Located in the Independence Park, where the proclamation of Brazil’s independence took place, the Museu do Ipiranga opened to the public on September 7, 1895, being the oldest public museum in the city of São Paulo. The Independence Park is landmarked by the National Historic and Artistic Heritage Institute (Iphan) and constitutes one of the most preserved urban complexes in the city, housing, besides the Museu do Ipiranga, the Monument to the Independence, where Dom Pedro I’s crypt is located, and the Casa do Grito, all immersed in gardens located in a vast and preserved wooded area. Popularly known as Museu do Ipiranga, its official name is Museu Paulista of the University of São Paulo, having been integrated into it in 1963. The museum is a scientific, cultural and educational institution operating in the field of History and whose activities have, as a permanent reference, a collection composed of more than 450,000 units, including objects, iconography and textual documentation, from the 17th to the mid-20th century, significant for the understanding of Brazilian society.

Proponent – Established in 1992, the University of São Paulo Support Foundation (FUSP) is a nonprofit foundation that works in the administration of teaching, research and university extension projects with the University of São Paulo (USP). It has managed more than 3,000 projects funded by private companies, public agencies and foreign entities. USP maintains art, culture and science centers and museums that are important not only for the university community, but for society as a whole. They are spaces open to public visitation that host artistic, historical and scientific activities.

BNDES Cultural Fund – BNDES’s efforts to preserve Brazilian heritage have been permanent and relevant, and the Bank is now recognized as the largest supporter of the segment. BNDES provides nonreimbursable support to projects related to preserving the Brazilian historical heritage that encourage the economic activities of culture and tourism. Decentralization and increase in the supply of cultural goods, social integration and the training of work force are other objectives of the fund. 

Learn more about BNDES Cultural Fund.