Brazil
| DOI | 10.1111/j.2041-9066.2011.00050.x |
| Author | Mahrukh Doctor |
| Date | 01 April 2011 |
| Published date | 01 April 2011 |
| Subject Matter | Country Focus |
President Lula (2003–10), Brazil has sought
to establish itself as an acknowledged re-
gional leader and credible global power. Its
influence in multilateral arenas such as the
World Trade Organization and the G20, and
various regional integration initiatives such
as the Union of South American Nations,
has grown considerably.
Lula’s legacy in terms of improving the
prospects of the poor is difficult to dispute.
During his government, the number of poor
fell from 30.4 million in 2003 to 17 million
in 2010. The middle class now numbers al-
most 100 million. Average growth in Lula’s
second term was 4.7 per cent with his last
year in office ending on a high note of over
7.5 per cent economic growth. Other mac-
roeconomic indicators are also much better
than a decade ago.
A number of factors contributed to these
achievements. First, there was monetary
Brazil
On 1 January 2011, Dilma Rousseff of
the Workers’ Party (PT) was sworn
in as Brazil’s first female president.
She promised to consolidate and advance
the social and economic progress made un-
der her predecessor, the extremely popular
and charismatic Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva,
better known simply as Lula. Brazil will
host the football World Cup in 2014 and
Rousseff is responsible for preparing the
country for the Olympics in 2016. Her task
is a tough one, partly due to her lack of ex-
perience in elected office. There is also the
(quite correct) perception that she owes her
position to Lula. However, her performance
in high ministerial positions and reputation
as a competent technocrat should serve her
well.
Positive Legacies
President Rousseff has a number of distinct
advantages and an opportunity to build
on a legacy of success. Brazil is the eighth
largest economy in the world. It has vast
natural resources (fresh water, arable land
and minerals) and will become one of the
largest oil producers once its ultra-deepwa-
ter oil comes into production. It has had
healthy trade surpluses for a decade and its
exports range from Embraer aeroplanes to
agricultural goods (it is the largest producer
of sugar/ethanol, coffee, orange juice, beef,
chicken, soya and tobacco in the world).
It has played an increasingly influential
role in global climate change talks and has
shown a growing commitment to improv-
ing environmental policy at home: Amazon
deforestation dropped from 27,000 square
kilometres in 2004 to less than 6,500 square
kilometres in 2010.
Rousseff also inherits a legacy of suc-
cess on the international stage. Beginning
with President Fernando Henrique Car-
doso (1995–2002) and accelerated under
Brazil’s new president, Dilma Rousseff, wants to build on Lula’s legacy of socio -economic and international
successes. But, as Mahrukh Doc tor reports, Rousseff is unlikely to consolidate these advances in the absence
of more determined, and successful, efforts at political reform.
stabilisation under the Real Plan in the
1990s. The Lula government maintained
the policy tripod inherited from the Car-
doso years – inflation targeting, primary
surplus and floating currency – considered
fundamental for macroeconomic stability
and growth. Economic stability contributed
to creating new employment opportunities:
14.5 million jobs were created during the
Lula era. He boosted the minimum wage and
increased access to credit for individuals, via
‘consigned credit’ provisions whereby loan
repayments were directly deducted from
an individual’s salary. He also increased the
supply of affordable housing and mortgages
(via the My House, My Life programme).
However, he will be best remembered for
his social policy achievements, including
the conditional cash transfer programme
Bolsa Familia (which benefits over 44 mil-
lion Brazilians).
Country Focus
Press Association Images
7April 2011
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