Bolsa Famflia’s conditional cash transfers have proved to be fundamental in achieving the poverty reduction observed over recent years. The paradigm shift it implied required an unusual measure of courage and political will. Although Brazil’s Constitution had already included poverty eradication among its basic fundamentals, the tendency to blame the poor for being poor was still deeply rooted in society, generating strong opposition to the programme in its first few years. To give help where it was needed, the federal government had to improve the structure of its social assistance networks and those of the municipalities.