EMPREL - Empresa Municipal de Informática

What EMPREL - Empresa Municipal de Informática does

EMPREL - Empresa Municipal de Informática is a municipal government-owned IT company founded in 1969 and headquartered in the Porto Digital technology park in Recife, Brazil. It operates as the exclusive technology arm of the Prefeitura do Recife, delivering IT services, software development, digital transformation, and citizen-facing platforms across all municipal secretariats and departments. Its core offering is Conecta Recife, a unified digital hub that aggregates over 150 municipal services — including healthcare (Recife Vacina, Minha Saúde Conectada, Atende Gestante), social programs (CredPop microcredit, CadÚnico enrollment), animal welfare (Adota PET), and general citizen services — accessible via web, mobile app, 400+ public WiFi locations, and physical service points in Compaz community centers.

The company's technology stack is built on Java with IBM WSAD and WebSphere, DB2 databases, and ESRI geoprocessing tools, unified by two proprietary frameworks: the MEDS software development methodology and the PTR Reference Technology Standard, both enforced by the GCT Technology Control Group. Supporting platforms include the Hub de Dados (880+ APIs and data resources), the Coreto open-innovation challenge platform, the Bora Impactar NGO-matching platform, and the Marketplace de Soluções for licensing municipal software to other cities. EMPREL was recognized as a Scientific, Technological and Innovation Institution (ICT) under Decree 38.871 in June 2025, formally enabling R&D partnerships with universities and startups.

EMPREL's business model is funded through municipal budget allocations and internal service agreements with the Prefeitura do Recife; revenue is not publicly disclosed and there are no external commercial customers of meaningful scale. In 2025 the company began initial geographic diversification through technical cooperation agreements with the municipalities of Timon (Maranhão) and Luís Eduardo Magalhães (Bahia), and opened the Marketplace de Soluções as a new commercial channel. The company is led by President Vitor Pavesi, following Bernardo D'Almeida's transition to head ANCITI (the National Association of Smart, Technological and Innovative Cities), and has received consecutive ANCITI Smart City Awards in 2022 and 2023, among 36 total awards for public-sector innovation.

Name

EMPREL - Empresa Municipal de Informática

Legal name

EMPRESA MUNICIPAL DE INFORMÁTICA

Website

https://emprel.gov.br

Company type

Private

Founded year

1969

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

EMPREL is the municipal IT company of Recife, Brazil, founded in 1969, that delivers exclusive technology services, digital transformation, and citizen-facing platforms — including Conecta Recife, Hub de Dados, and CredPop — to the Prefeitura do Recife and its secretariats.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Municipal IT Services and Smart City Platforms

NAICS

Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (5182), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518210), Software Publishers (5132), Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Services-Computer Processing & Data Preparation (7374), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373), Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)

akta.pro primary industry

Government Digital Service & eGovernment (Service Delivery, IDs, Portals) (BPAIAAAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Digital Development & ICT4D / GovTech Technical Assistance (BPADAEAL), eSignature, Forms & Digital Workflow Platforms (HDAEAHAJ)

Keywords

• Municipal IT services
• Smart city platforms
• Digital government services
• E-government solutions
• Citizen services hub

Headquarters

HQ city

Recife

HQ country

Brazil

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. IT Services to Municipality of Recife: EMPREL operates as the municipal IT company providing all technology services, software development, maintenance, and digital infrastructure to the Prefeitura do Recife. Revenue comes from municipal government budget allocations and service contracts with various municipal secretariats and departments.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

EMPREL provides centralized IT services and a unified digital services platform (Conecta Recife) for the Municipality of Recife, developing, hosting, and maintaining over 150 citizen-facing services and internal municipal systems including healthcare, education, social assistance, taxation, and microcredit. It also packages replicable digital solutions on a marketplace for sharing with other municipalities and operates open-innovation programs with startups, universities, and the private sector.

Product overview

EMPREL operates as the municipal IT company of Recife managing a comprehensive digital services ecosystem comprising citizen-facing platforms and internal systems. The core offering is Conecta Recife, a unified hub providing access to over 150 municipal services including healthcare (Recife Vacina, Minha Saúde Conectada, Atende Gestante), social programs (CredPop microcredit, CadÚnico), and general municipal services. Supporting platforms include specialized solutions like Adota PET (animal adoption), Bora Impactar (NGO matching), and Hub de Dados (open data with 880+ resources). Innovation programs including Hacker Cidadão hackathons, Eita! Recife acceleration cycles, and the Coreto challenge platform drive open innovation with private sector participation. Physical access points through Espaço Conecta and Conecta Itinerante extend digital services to underserved communities. The company also provides a marketplace for replicable solutions and employs proprietary MEDS development methodology.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Conecta Recife (App e Web)

Quantifiable outcome

• R$ 3 million saved through digital vaccination system
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered minor, flagship and core.

• Prefeitura de Timon (MA)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 29 July 2025Technical Cooperation Agreement for sharing digital solutions developed by Recife. Municipalities receive access to solutions including Caderneta da Infância, Moeda Capiba, Atende Gestante, and mentoring for implementation.
• Prefeitura de Luís Eduardo Magalhães (BA)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 29 July 2025Technical Cooperation Agreement for sharing digital solutions. Similar to Timon partnership, sharing solutions for public management digitalization.
• Porto DigitalflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 July 2025Porto Digital is Recife's main technology park and innovation ecosystem. EMPREL is headquartered in the Porto Digital territory (relocated in 2020). The Porto Digital park generated R$ 7.4 billion in revenue in 2025 and employs over 24,000 people. EMPREL collaborates with Porto Digital companies for various municipal technology projects and initiatives.
• ANCITI - Associação Nacional das Cidades InteligentescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 April 2025President Bernardo D'Almeida serves as president of ANCITI. Association coordinates cooperation between Brazilian cities for sharing digital solutions, experiences and best practices through Rede Conecta initiative.
• UNICAP - Universidade Católica de PernambucocoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 March 2025Partnership between EMPREL and UNICAP strengthens scientific dissemination through TV Conecta Recife. Cooperation gave rise to 'Conexão Ciência' program airing biweekly on the TV Conecta Recife YouTube channel.
• ABDI - Agência Brasileira de Desenvolvimento IndustrialcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Brazilian Development Industrial Agency for developing the Coreto platform and conducting research and development and innovation (PD&I) contracts. EMPREL received ICT status enabling participation in R&D projects with ABDI.
• UFPE - Universidade Federal de PernambucocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFederal university partnership for technology and innovation. UFPE participated in Hub de Dados project development with EMPREL and is part of the city's innovation ecosystem. University developed tools for Bora Impactar platform.
• Federação das Empresas Juniores de PernambucominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnical cooperation agreement to encourage entrepreneurship and innovation in academic environment, signed with Pernambuco Federation of Junior Enterprises.
• TJPE - Tribunal de Justiça de PernambucominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Arena GO Recife events bringing free services to population. Joint initiatives combining court services with municipal digital services for citizen access.
• Centro de Informática da UFPEcoreTechnology or IntegrationDeveloped two technological tools integrated into Bora Impactar platform. Work aligned with university extension project 'Mecanismos de Inovação Social Aberta através da Extensão Universitária'.
• Governo BritânicominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Hub de Dados project development, along with Agence Française de Développement.
• Agência Francesa de Desenvolvimento (AFD)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench Development Agency partnering in Hub de Dados project implementation and municipal digital transformation initiatives.
• Governo Federal / Advocacia-Geral da UniãominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for strengthening and implementation of New Legal Framework for Startups, through Labori Innovation Laboratory, signed at NEon event in João Pessoa.
• SENAC PernambucominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost institution for Hacker Cidadão 13.0 event at Instituto de Ciência e Tecnologia SENAC Pernambuco in Recife Antigo.
• CDL Recife - Câmara de Dirigentes LojistasminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Rota do Comércio program and Jornada Marketing do Futuro course, supporting local commerce digitalization.
• Shineray do BrasilminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFirst private company to launch a challenge on the Coreto platform, seeking technological solutions for motor/s chassis triage automation in motorcycle assembly. Potential R$50,000 MVP development investment.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• PRODAM (São Paulo): São Paulo's municipal IT company—same municipal-IT business model providing software, data infrastructure, and digital services to the Prefeitura de São Paulo. Closest functional peer to EMPREL given comparable scope (citizen platforms, internal systems, data governance) and large-city government ownership structure.
• IPLAN Rio: Rio de Janeiro's municipal information technology company providing IT infrastructure, systems integration, and digital services to the Prefeitura do Rio. Direct peer in the same municipal-IT-services business model.
• Empresa Salvador Tecnologia da Informação (Salvador TI): Salvador's municipal IT entity responsible for digital government services for the Prefeitura de Salvador. Comparable in delivering municipal digital platforms and IT services in a major Brazilian capital.
• CEITEC (Curitiba): Curitiba's municipal information technology agency providing IT services to the Prefeitura de Curitiba, historically one of Brazil's most digitized city governments. Comparable municipal-IT operator with similar citizen-services mandate.
• PRODABEL (Belo Horizonte): Belo Horizonte's municipal IT company delivering digital services, citizen apps, and internal systems for the city government. Directly comparable as a Brazilian state-capital municipal IT operator with similar G2G service mandate.

Broad incumbents

• Movti / TOTVS Public Sector: TOTVS is Brazil's largest enterprise-software vendor and runs a public-sector division selling ERP, citizen-service, and back-office platforms to municipalities and states. A broad incumbent vendor competing for the same municipal IT modernization budgets as EMPREL.
• Accenture Federal Services / Public Sector: Global consulting and systems integrator with a large public-sector practice delivering IT modernization, digital platforms, and citizen services to government clients. A broad incumbent that competes for large municipal transformation deals.

Emerging players

• Kunumi: Brazilian AI/ML company with significant public-sector work applying AI to government services and decision-making. Emerging player that competes for the same AI-for-government opportunity as EMPREL's Novo Conecta com IA.
• Brain Tecnologia / Brain GovTech: Brazilian GovTech vendor delivering software products and platforms to municipal and state governments. Comparable in delivering replicable digital government solutions across multiple Brazilian municipalities.

Others

• TCU/ANCITI Rede Conecta municipal network: ANCITI is the national association of Brazilian smart cities (presided by EMPREL's own former president). It is a coordination/ecosystem peer rather than a commercial competitor, but operates the Rede Conecta channel through which EMPREL's marketplace expands.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/emprelrecife
• Instagraminstagram.com/emprelrecife
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/emprel

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about EMPREL - Empresa Municipal de Informática