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The distributed MOSEE model was used to investigate scale and land-use change impacts on runoff and soil erosion processes in catchments located in the semi-arid northeast region of Brazil. The model includes functions that take into account the spatial variability of rainfall and catchment characteristics. To simulate hydrological and sediment transport processes in the study basins, model parameters were estimated with previously published pedotransfer functions and soil texture data in the Representative Sume basin (RBS) located in Paraiba, Brazil. The results show that, in general, runoff and sediment yield simulations were comparable to the observed values at the small scale using a combination of pedotransfer functions. For the larger basins, the simulated runoffs, aggregated to a daily basis for comparisons, provided a reasonable fit for the observed data in two catchments. The simulated runoff and sediment yields increased as deforestation and catchment area increased, demonstrating the relevance of vegetation as an effective protective agent to reduce soil erosion.