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This article discusses the results of an evaluation research on the implementation of the Bolsa Família, a conditional cash program targeted at poor families in Manguinhos, Brazil. The program pursues two main objectives: reducing current poverty and promoting human capital through the increased utilization of educational and health services. Connecting different agencies and stakeholders and building capacity for collaboration are two strategies associated with program effectiveness. Implementation evaluation showed that in Manguinhos, there were large gaps concerning the action’s adequacy in relation to the specific implementation context, intersectoral collaboration and shared knowledge. Evidence from this research was used to spearhead concrete changes in policy at the local level.

Some studies have revealed the impact of the family welfare allowance based on the fulfillment of certain conditions on improving living conditions and access to health and education services in different countries. However, gaps persist relating to the evaluation of the benefits of such programs among the groups that have greater difficulty in gaining access to public services or advances in the quality of education and school performance. Moreover, there is limited evidence of adequacy of the program to the respective contexts of implementation, levels of adhesion and local cooperation and strategies adopted for integration with other social policy programs. The scope of this article is to discuss the findings of the study of the implementation of the "Bolsa Familia" in the Manguinhos shantytown area in Rio de Janeiro conducted in 2007 and 2008 based on semi-structured interviews with program officials and local stakeholders. In conclusion, the study shows that the sustainability of "Bolsa Familia" actions to reduce poverty and promote health equity calls for strengthening the vertical and horizontal communication channels between government levels, public managers and civil associations, recognition of the complexity of the local social demands and an intersectoral agenda.