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Guide
Introduction
| |
| Background: |
Following three centuries
under the rule of Portugal, Brazil became an independent nation in 1822.
By far the largest and most populous country in South America, Brazil
has overcome more than half a century of military intervention in the
governance of the country to pursue industrial and agricultural growth
and development of the interior. Exploiting vast natural resources and a
large labor pool, Brazil became Latin America's leading economic power
by the 1970s. Highly unequal income distribution remains a pressing
problem. |
| Location: |
Eastern South America,
bordering the Atlantic Ocean |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
10 00 S, 55 00 W |
| Map
references: |
South America |
| Area: |
total: 8,511,965
sq km
land: 8,456,510 sq km
water: 55,455 sq km
note: includes Arquipelago de Fernando de Noronha, Atol das
Rocas, Ilha da Trindade, Ilhas Martin Vaz, and Penedos de Sao Pedro e
Sao Paulo |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly smaller than the US |
| Land
boundaries: |
total: 14,691 km
border countries: Argentina 1,224 km, Bolivia 3,400 km,
Colombia 1,643 km, French Guiana 673 km, Guyana 1,119 km, Paraguay 1,290
km, Peru 1,560 km, Suriname 597 km, Uruguay 985 km, Venezuela 2,200 km |
| Maritime
claims: |
contiguous zone:
24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Climate: |
mostly tropical, but
temperate in south |
| Terrain: |
mostly flat to rolling
lowlands in north; some plains, hills, mountains, and narrow coastal
belt |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico da Neblina 3,014 m |
| Natural
resources: |
bauxite, gold, iron ore,
manganese, nickel, phosphates, platinum, tin, uranium, petroleum,
hydropower, timber |
| Land
use: |
arable land: 5%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 22%
forests and woodland: 58%
other: 14% (1993 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
28,000 sq km (1993 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
recurring droughts in
northeast; floods and occasional frost in south |
| Environment
- current issues: |
deforestation in Amazon Basin
destroys the habitat and endangers the existence of a multitude of plant
and animal species indigenous to the area; air and water pollution in
Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and several other large cities; land
degradation and water pollution caused by improper mining activities
note: President CARDOSO in September 1999 signed into force
an environmental crime bill which for the first time defines pollution
and deforestation as crimes punishable by stiff fines and jail sentences |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources,
Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban,
Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical
Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
| Geography
- note: |
largest country in South
America; shares common boundaries with every South American country
except Chile and Ecuador |
| Population: |
174,468,575
note: Brazil took an intercensal count in August 1996 which
reported a population of 157,079,573; that figure was about 5% lower
than projections by the US Census Bureau, which is close to the implied
underenumeration of 4.6% for the 1991 census; estimates for this country
explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to
AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality
and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the
distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be
expected (July 2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
28.57% (male 25,390,039; female 24,449,902)
15-64 years: 65.98% (male 56,603,895; female 58,507,289)
65 years and over: 5.45% (male 3,857,564; female 5,659,886)
(2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
0.91% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
18.45 births/1,000 population
(2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
9.34 deaths/1,000 population
(2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
-0.03 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth: 1.05
male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
36.96 deaths/1,000 live
births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total population:
63.24 years
male: 58.96 years
female: 67.73 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
2.09 children born/woman
(2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
0.57% (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
540,000 (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- deaths: |
18,000 (1999 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Brazilian(s)
adjective: Brazilian |
| Ethnic
groups: |
white (includes Portuguese,
German, Italian, Spanish, Polish) 55%, mixed white and black 38%, black
6%, other (includes Japanese, Arab, Amerindian) 1% |
| Religions: |
Roman Catholic (nominal) 80% |
| Languages: |
Portuguese (official),
Spanish, English, French |
| Literacy: |
definition: age
15 and over can read and write
total population: 83.3%
male: 83.3%
female: 83.2% (1995 est.) |
| Country
name: |
conventional long form:
Federative Republic of Brazil
conventional short form: Brazil
local long form: Republica Federativa do Brasil
local short form: Brasil |
| Government
type: |
federative republic |
| Administrative
divisions: |
26 states (estados, singular
- estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Acre, Alagoas,
Amapa, Amazonas, Bahia, Ceara, Distrito Federal*, Espirito Santo, Goias,
Maranhao, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Para, Paraiba,
Parana, Pernambuco, Piaui, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio
Grande do Sul, Rondonia, Roraima, Santa Catarina, Sao Paulo, Sergipe,
Tocantins |
| Independence: |
7 September 1822 (from
Portugal) |
| National
holiday: |
Independence Day, 7 September
(1822) |
| Constitution: |
5 October 1988 |
| Legal
system: |
based on Roman codes; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Suffrage: |
voluntary between 16 and 18
years of age and over 70; compulsory over 18 and under 70 years of age |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of state:
President Fernando Henrique CARDOSO (since 1 January 1995); Vice
President Marco MACIEL (since 1 January 1995); note - the president is
both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Fernando Henrique CARDOSO
(since 1 January 1995); Vice President Marco MACIEL (since 1 January
1995); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president and vice president elected on the same
ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 4 October
1998 (next to be held NA October 2002)
election results: Fernando Henrique CARDOSO reelected
president; percent of vote - 53% |
| Legislative
branch: |
bicameral National Congress
or Congresso Nacional consists of the Federal Senate or Senado Federal
(81 seats; three members from each state or federal district elected
according to the principle of majority to serve eight-year terms;
one-third elected after a four year period, two-thirds elected after the
next four-year period) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara dos
Deputados (513 seats; members are elected by proportional representation
to serve four-year terms)
elections: Federal Senate - last held 4 October 1998 for
one-third of Senate (next to be held NA October 2002 for two-thirds of
the Senate); Chamber of Deputies - last held 4 October 1998 (next to be
held NA October 2002)
election results: Federal Senate - percent of vote by party
- NA%; seats by party - PMDB 27, PFL 20, PSDB 16, PT 7, PPB 5, PSB 3,
PDT 2, PPS 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%;
seats by party - PFL 106, PSDB 99, PMDB 82, PPB 60, PT 58, PTB 31, PDT
25, PSB 19, PL 12, PCdoB 7, other 14 |
| Judicial
branch: |
Supreme Federal Tribunal (11
ministers are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate);
Higher Tribunal of Justice; Regional Federal Tribunals (judges are
appointed for life) |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
Brazilian Democratic Movement
Party or PMDB [Jader BARBALHO, president]; Brazilian Labor Party or PTB
[Roberto JEFFERSON]; Brazilian Social Democracy Party or PSDB [Teotonio
VILELA Filno]; Brazilian Socialist Party or PSB [Miguel ARRAES,
president]; Brazilian Progressive Party or PPB [Paulo Salim MALUF];
Communist Party of Brazil or PCdoB [Sergio Roberto Gomes SOUZA,
chairman]; Democratic Labor Party or PDT [Leonel BRIZOLA, president];
Liberal Front Party or PFL [Jorge BORNHAUSEN, president]; Liberal Party
or PL [Francisco Teixeira de OLIVEIRA]; Popular Socialist Party or PPS [Ciro
GOMEZ, president]; Worker's Party or PT [Jose DIRCEU, president] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
left wing of the Catholic
Church, Landless Worker's Movement, and labor unions allied to leftist
Worker's Party are critical of government's social and economic policies |
| International
organization participation: |
AfDB, BIS, CCC, ECLAC, FAO,
G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM,
IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol,
IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, NAM (observer), NSG,
OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR,
UNMOP, UNTAET, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Rubens Antonio BARBOSA
chancery: 3006 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC
20008
telephone: [1] (202) 238-2700
FAX: [1] (202) 238-2827
consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los
Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Anthony S. HARRINGTON
embassy: Avenida das Nacoes, Quadra 801, Lote 3, Distrito
Federal Cep 70403-900, Brasilia
mailing address: Unit 3500, APO AA 34030
telephone: [55] (061) 321-7272
FAX: [55] (061) 225-9136
consulate(s) general: Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo
consulate(s): Recife |
| Flag
description: |
green with a large yellow
diamond in the center bearing a blue celestial globe with 27 white
five-pointed stars (one for each state and the Federal District)
arranged in the same pattern as the night sky over Brazil; the globe has
a white equatorial band with the motto ORDEM E PROGRESSO (Order and
Progress) |
| Economy
- overview: |
Possessing large and
well-developed agricultural, mining, manufacturing, and service sectors,
Brazil's economy outweighs that of all other South American countries
and is expanding its presence in world markets. In the late eighties and
early nineties, high inflation hindered economic activity and
investment. "The Real Plan", instituted in the spring of 1994,
sought to break inflationary expectations by pegging the real to the US
dollar. Inflation was brought down to single digit annual figures, but
not fast enough to avoid substantial real exchange rate appreciation
during the transition phase of the "Real Plan". This
appreciation meant that Brazilian goods were now more expensive relative
to goods from other countries, which contributed to large current
account deficits. However, no shortage of foreign currency ensued
because of the financial community's renewed interest in Brazilian
markets as inflation rates stabilized and the debt crisis of the
eighties faded from memory. The maintenance of large current account
deficits via capital account surpluses became problematic as investors
became more risk averse to emerging market exposure as a consequence of
the Asian financial crisis in 1997 and the Russian bond default in
August 1998. After crafting a fiscal adjustment program and pledging
progress on structural reform, Brazil received a $41.5 billion IMF-led
international support program in November 1998. In January 1999, the
Brazilian Central Bank announced that the real would no longer be pegged
to the US dollar. This devaluation helped moderate the downturn in
economic growth in 1999 that investors had expressed concerns about over
the summer of 1998. Brazil's debt to GDP ratio for 1999 beat the IMF
target and helped reassure investors that Brazil will maintain tight
fiscal and monetary policy even with a floating currency. The economy
continued to recover in 2000, with inflation remaining in the single
digits and expected growth for 2001 of 4.5%. Foreign direct investment
set a record of more than $30 billion in 2000. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power parity -
$1.13 trillion (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
4.2% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power parity -
$6,500 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture: 9%
industry: 29%
services: 62% (1999 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
17.4% (1990 est.) |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 47.6% (1996) |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
6% (2000) |
| Labor
force: |
79 million (1999 est.) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
services 53.2%, agriculture
23.1%, industry 23.7% |
| Unemployment
rate: |
7.1% (2000 est.) |
| Budget: |
revenues: $151
billion
expenditures: $149 billion, including capital expenditures
of $36 billion (1998) |
| Industries: |
textiles, shoes, chemicals,
cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, steel, aircraft, motor vehicles and
parts, other machinery and equipment |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
6.9% (2000 est.) |
| Electricity
- production: |
337.44 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
5.28%
hydro: 90.66%
nuclear: 1.12%
other: 2.94% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
353.674 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
5 million kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
39.86 billion kWh
note: supplied by Paraguay (1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
coffee, soybeans, wheat,
rice, corn, sugarcane, cocoa, citrus; beef |
| Exports: |
$55.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
manufactures, iron ore,
soybeans, footwear, coffee |
| Exports
- partners: |
US 23%, Argentina 11%,
Germany 5%, Netherlands 5%, Japan 5% (1999) |
| Imports: |
$55.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
machinery and equipment,
chemical products, oil, electricity |
| Imports
- partners: |
US 24%, Argentina 12%,
Germany 10%, Japan 5%, Italy 5% (1999) |
| Debt
- external: |
$232 billion (2000) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
NA |
| Exchange
rates: |
reals per US dollar - 1.954
(January 2001), 1.830 (2000), 1.815 (1999), 1.161 (1998), 1.078 (1997),
1.005 (1996)
note: from October 1994 through 14 January 1999, the
official rate was determined by a managed float; since 15 January 1999,
the official rate floats independently with respect to the US dollar |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
17.039 million (1997) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
4.4 million (1997) |
| Telephone
system: |
general assessment:
good working system
domestic: extensive microwave radio relay system and a
domestic satellite system with 64 earth stations
international: 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth
stations - 3 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean
region east), connected by microwave relay system to MERCOSUR Brazilsat
B3 satellite earth station |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 1,365, FM 296, shortwave
161 (of which 91 are collocated with AM stations) (1999) |
| Radios: |
71 million (1997) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
138 (1997) |
| Televisions: |
36.5 million (1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.br |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
50 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
8.65 million (2000) |
| Railways: |
total: 30,539 km
(2,129 km electrified); note - excludes urban rail
broad gauge: 5,679 km 1.600-m gauge (1199 km electrified)
standard gauge: 194 km 1.440-m gauge
narrow gauge: 24,666 km 1.000-m gauge (930 km electrified)
dual gauge: 336 km 1.000-m and 1.600-m gauges (three rails)
(1999 est.) |
| Highways: |
total: 1.98
million km
paved: 184,140 km
unpaved: 1,795,860 km (1996) |
| Pipelines: |
crude oil 2,980 km; petroleum
products 4,762 km; natural gas 4,246 km (1998) |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Belem, Fortaleza, Ilheus,
Imbituba, Manaus, Paranagua, Porto Alegre, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, Rio
Grande, Salvador, Santos, Vitoria |
| Merchant
marine: |
total: 171 ships
(1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,788,999 GRT/6,067,314 DWT
ships by type: bulk 33, cargo 26, chemical tanker 5,
combination ore/oil 9, container 12, liquefied gas 11, multi-functional
large-load carrier 1, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 56, roll
on/roll off 12, short-sea passenger 1 (2000 est.) |
| Airports: |
3,264 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total: 570
over 3,047 m: 5
2,438 to 3,047 m: 21
1,524 to 2,437 m: 141
914 to 1,523 m: 370
under 914 m: 33 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total: 2,694
1,524 to 2,437 m: 68
914 to 1,523 m: 1,279
under 914 m: 1,347 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
Brazilian Army, Brazilian
Navy (includes naval air and marines), Brazilian Air Force, Federal
Police (paramilitary) |
| Military
manpower - military age: |
18 years of age |
| Military
manpower - availability: |
males age 15-49:
48,298,486 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - fit for military service: |
males age 15-49:
32,388,786 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - reaching military age annually: |
males: 1,762,740
(2001 est.) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$13.408 billion (FY99) |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
1.9% (FY99) |
| Disputes
- international: |
none |
| Illicit
drugs: |
limited illicit producer of
cannabis, minor coca cultivation in the Amazon region, mostly used for
domestic consumption; government has a large-scale eradication program
to control cannabis; important transshipment country for Bolivian,
Colombian, and Peruvian cocaine headed for the US and Europe; also used
by traffickers as a way station for narcotics air transshipments between
Peru and Colombia; upsurge in drug-related violence and weapons
smuggling; important market for Bolivian, Peruvian, and Colombian
cocaine |
|
