The Government of Brazil charges R$1 million from an NGO chaired by Karina Ferreira da Gama for failures in the execution of an agreement in the area of education.
The ICB (Instituto Saber Brasil) delivered robotics kits that did not work properly, did not provide technical support and did not present the final project documentation, according to reports from the Department of Education.
On the 12th, the DF Research Support Foundation sent an opinion to the NGO rejecting the project’s accounts, in addition to the charge. The department opened a period of up to 15 days for the defense, that is, the payment can be reviewed.
Karina is also managing partner of , producer of “”, a feature film about (PL). When the senator (PL) asked Daniel Vorcaro, then owner of , for money for the film, a crisis opened up in his pre-campaign for the Presidency.
The institute’s agreement with the Government of the Federal District was signed in 2023, for R$4 million. After an amendment signed in January 2025, the agreement reached R$5 million.
It is precisely the value of the additive that is being charged. The local government, however, informed the ICB that it will also reevaluate the execution of the entire partnership, “with a view to determining any additional debt arising from unexecuted or unproven portions of the originally agreed object”.
The aim of the project, called Steam Maker, was for students to be able to create, repair and modify objects in a school laboratory. ICB committed to delivering mobile cabinets to house materials and tools, as well as kits with notebooks, 3D printers, robotics equipment, among others.
The initial plan was to serve at least 500 students. The DF Government’s final reports do not indicate how many students benefited. If the goal has been achieved, the investment is equivalent to R$10,000 per student.
Reports of visits to DF schools that were part of the ICB program, attached to the agreement process, show that teachers have complained about faulty equipment since 2024. In one case, one of them said that there was no adequate training in using the 3D printer. It further states that ICB sent a YouTube video link when support was requested.
In October 2025, teachers from another school in DF pointed out “the fragility of the material” delivered by the NGO, “with frequent detachment of the rear covers of the tits, rails and modules”. They also said that they carried out “improvised repairs with masking tape as a palliative measure”.
Even after the complaints, the DF Government approved the accounting for the first stage of the agreement, worth R$4 million, and signed the amendment with the NGO.
On the 12th, the DF Research Support Foundation, which brokered the agreement, sent the “term of judgment of accounts” to the ICB stating that there are “sufficient elements to recognize, on a preliminary basis, the non-execution of the object” of the additive term of R$ 1 million.
In a statement, the Department of Education said that “not all goals and deliveries foreseen in the work plan have been fully proven” and that the final accountability is “pending”.
Days before receiving the charge, Karina told the DF Government that she was still awaiting the completion of a USP scientific article on the project, among other data needed for the final report. She also asked for more time to present the final financial statement, which was not accepted.
In a statement, the ICB said it “refutes the interpretation” that the agreement was not fulfilled. “We understand that the planned activities were carried out and that the evidence, reports, platform records, teaching materials, training, educational licenses and other proofs were presented or are in the process of being supplemented with the responsible bodies.”
The NGO stated that the process has an open deadline for the presentation of the defense.
The institute also said that “adjustments, improvements, replacements or corrections identified during execution are part of the normal process of implementing and monitoring projects of this complexity, and do not, in themselves, characterize non-execution of the object”.
The Instituto Saber Brasil also signed a contract with the City Hall to receive R$108 million to provide Wi-Fi internet in low-income communities. Companies and entities linked to Karina from Bolsonaro’s parliamentary amendments and the provision of services to candidates who support the former president.
