Brazil
Federative Republic of BrazilRepublica Federativa do Brasil
federative republicIndependence 7 September 1822 (from Portugal)
Brazil as the 2005 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 128 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.
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Introduction
1 fieldBackground
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 overcame more than half a century of military intervention in the governance of the country when in 1985 the military regime peacefully ceded power to civilian rulers. Brazil continues to pursue industrial and agricultural growth and development of its interior. Exploiting vast natural resources and a large labor pool, it is today South America's leading economic power and a regional leader. Highly unequal income distribution remains a pressing problem.
Geography
Eastern South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean
18 fieldsLand useshare of 8,511,965 sq km
Terrain
mostly flat to rolling lowlands in north; some plains, hills, mountains, and narrow coastal belt
Natural resources
bauxite, gold, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, platinum, tin, uranium, petroleum, hydropower, timber
Environment - current issues
- deforestation in Amazon Basin destroys the habitat and endangers a multitude of plant and animal species indigenous to the area;
- there is a lucrative illegal wildlife trade;
- 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;
- wetland degradation;
- severe oil spills
Environment - international agreements
- party to:
- Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
- signed, but not ratified:
- none of the selected agreements
Geography - note
largest country in South America; shares common boundaries with every South American country except Chile and Ecuador
People
19 fieldsAge structuremale left, female right · (2005 est.)
Note
Per 1,000 population(2005 est.)
Male · female
Ethnic groups(2000 census)
Religions(2000 census)
Sex ratio
- at birth:
- 1.05 male(s)/female
- under 15 years:
- 1.04 male(s)/female
- 15-64 years:
- 0.98 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over:
- 0.7 male(s)/female
- total population:
- 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Government
Federative republic; President Luiz Inacio LULA DA SILVA (since 1 January 2003); President Luiz Inacio LULA DA SILVA (since 1 January 2003)
18 fieldsFederal Senate, 513 seats, elected 6 October 2002 for two-thirds of the Senateseats by party
Country name
- conventional long form:
- Federative Republic of Brazil
- conventional short form:
- Brazil
- local long form:
- Republica Federativa do Brasil
- local short form:
- Brasil
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
Suffrage
- voluntary between 16 and 18 years of age and over 70;
- compulsory over 18 and under 70 years of age;
- note - military conscripts do not vote
Executive branch
- chief of state:
- President Luiz Inacio LULA DA SILVA (since 1 January 2003);
- Vice President Jose ALENCAR (since 1 January 2003);
- note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
- head of government:
- President Luiz Inacio LULA DA SILVA (since 1 January 2003);
- Vice President Jose ALENCAR (since 1 January 2003);
- 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 6 October 2002 (next to be held 1 October 2006, with a runoff on 29 October 2006 if necessary);
- runoff election held 27 October 2002
- election results:
- in runoff election 27 October 2002, Luiz Inacio LULA DA SILVA (PT) elected with 61.3% of the vote; Jose SERRA (PSDB) 38.7%
Legislative branch
bicameral National Congress or Congresso Nacional consists of the Federal Senate or Senado Federal (81 seats; three members from each state and 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 6 October 2002 for two-thirds of the Senate (next to be held October 2006 for one-third of the Senate);
- Chamber of Deputies - last held 6 October 2002 (next to be held October 2006)
- election results:
- Federal Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%;
- seats by party - PMBD 19, PFL 19, PT 14, PSDB 11, PDT 5, PSB 4, PL 3, PTB 3, PPS 1, PSD 1, PP 1;
- Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%;
- seats by party - PT 91, PFL 84, PMDB 74, PSDB 71, PP 49, PL 26, PTB 26, PSB 22, PDT 21, PPS 15, PCdoB 12, PRONA 6, PV 5, other 11;
- note - many congressmen have changed party affiliation since the most recent election
Judicial branch
- Supreme Federal Tribunal (11 ministers are appointed for life by the president and confirmed by the Senate);
- Higher Tribunal of Justice;
- Regional Federal Tribunals (judges are appointed for life);
- note - though appointed "for life," judges, like all federal employees, have a mandatory retirement age of 70
Political parties and leaders
- Brazilian Democratic Movement Party or PMDB [Federal Deputy Michel TEMER];
- Brazilian Labor Party or PTB [Federal Deputy Roberto JEFFERSON];
- Brazilian Social Democracy Party or PSDB [Senator Eduardo AZAREDO];
- Brazilian Socialist Party or PSB [Federal Deputy Miguel ARRAES];
- Communist Party of Brazil or PCdoB [Renato RABELO];
- Democratic Labor Party or PDT [Carlos LUPI];
- Democratic Socialist Party or PSD [Pedro Miguel SANTANA LOPES];
- Green Party or PV [Jose Luiz de Franca PENNA];
- Liberal Front Party or PFL [Senator Jorge BORNHAUSEN];
- Liberal Party or PL [Federal Deputy Valdemar COSTA Neto];
- National Order Reconstruction Party or PRONA [Federal Deputy Dr. Eneas CARNEIRO];
- Popular Socialist Party or PPS [Federal Deputy Roberto FREIRE];
- Progressive Party or PP [Federal Deputy Pedro CORREA];
- Social Christian Party or PSC [Vitor Jorge ABDALA NOSSEIS];
- Worker's Party or PT [Jose GENOINO]
Political pressure groups and leaders
- Landless Worker's Movement;
- labor unions and federations;
- large farmers' associations;
- religious groups including evangelical christian churches and the Catholic Church
International organization participation
AfDB, BIS, CSN, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MIGA, MINUSTAH, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Roberto ABDENUR
- 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 John DANILOVICH
- embassy:
- Avenida das Nacoes, Quadra 801, Lote 3, Distrito Federal Cep 70403-900, Brasilia
- mailing address:
- Unit 3500, APO AA 34030
- telephone:
- [55] (61) 312-7000
- FAX:
- [55] (61) 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
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.
45 fieldsGDP - composition by sector(2004 est.)
Trading partnersexports left, imports right
Electricity
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. From 2001-03 real wages fell and Brazil's economy grew, on average, only 2.2% per year, as the country absorbed a series of domestic and international economic shocks.
That Brazil absorbed these shocks without financial collapse is a tribute to the resiliency of the Brazilian economy and the economic program put in place by former President CARDOSO and strengthened by President LULA DA SILVA. In 2004, Brazil enjoyed more robust growth that yielded increases in employment and real wages.
The three pillars of the economic program are a floating exchange rate, an inflation-targeting regime, and tight fiscal policy, all reinforced by a series of IMF programs. The currency depreciated sharply in 2001 and 2002, which contributed to a dramatic current account adjustment: in 2003 and 2004, Brazil ran record trade surpluses and recorded its first current account surpluses since 1992.
Productivity gains - particularly in agriculture - also contributed to the surge in exports, and Brazil in 2004 surpassed the previous year's record export level and again posted a current account surplus. While economic management has been good, there remain important economic vulnerabilities.
The most significant are debt-related: the government's largely domestic debt increased steadily from 1994 to 2003 - straining government finances - before falling as a percentage of GDP in 2004, while Brazil's foreign debt (a mix of private and public debt) is large in relation to Brazil's small (but growing) export base.
Another challenge is maintaining economic growth over a period of time to generate employment and make the government debt burden more manageable.
Industries
textiles, shoes, chemicals, cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, steel, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, other machinery and equipment
Exchange rates
reals per US dollar - 2.9251 (2004), 3.0771 (2003), 2.9208 (2002), 2.3577 (2001), 1.8301 (2000)
Communications
8 fieldsTelephone system
- general assessment:
- good working system
- domestic:
- extensive microwave radio relay system and a domestic satellite system with 64 earth stations
- international:
- country code - 55;
- 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)
Transportation
10 fieldsAirports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right
Networkskm
Railways
- total:
- 29,412 km (1,567 km electrified)
- broad gauge:
- 4,907 km 1.600-m gauge (908 km electrified)
- standard gauge:
- 194 km 1.440-m gauge
- narrow gauge:
- 23,915 km 1.000-m gauge (581 km electrified)
- dual gauge:
- 396 km 1.000-m and 1.600-m gauges (three rails) (78 km electrified) (2004)
Pipelines
- condensate/gas 244 km;
- gas 10,739 km;
- liquid petroleum gas 341 km;
- oil 5,212 km;
- refined products 4,755 km (2004)
Ports and harbors
Gebig, Itaqui, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande, San Sebasttiao, Santos, Sepetiba Terminal, Tubarao, Vitoria
Merchant marine
- total:
- 150 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,961,431 GRT/4,725,267 DWT
- by type:
- bulk carrier 28, cargo 25, chemical tanker 7, combination ore/oil 2, container 7, liquefied gas 12, passenger/cargo 12, petroleum tanker 48, roll on/roll off 9
- foreign-owned:
- 17 (Chile 2, Germany 7, Norway 1, Spain 7)
- registered in other countries:
- 8 (2005)
Military
Brazilian Army, Brazilian Navy (includes Naval Air and Marines), Brazilian Air Force (FAB)
7 fieldsMilitary branches
Brazilian Army, Brazilian Navy (includes Naval Air and Marines), Brazilian Air Force (FAB)
Military service age and obligation
19 years of age for compulsory military service, conscript service obligation - 12 months; 17 years of age for voluntary service (2001)
Transnational Issues
2 fieldsDisputes - international
- unruly region at convergence of Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay borders is locus of money laundering, smuggling, arms and illegal narcotics trafficking, and fundraising for extremist organizations;
- uncontested dispute with Uruguay over certain islands in the Quarai/Cuareim and Invernada boundary streams and the resulting tripoint with Argentina;
- in 2004 Brazil submitted its claims to UNCLOS to extend its maritime continental margin
Illicit drugs
- illicit producer of cannabis;
- minor coca cultivation in the Amazon region, 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 Europe and the US;
- 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 Colombian, Bolivian, and Peruvian cocaine;
- illicit narcotics proceeds earned in Brazil are often laundered through the financial system;
- significant illicit financial activity in the Tri-Border Area
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Brazil.” The World Factbook 2005. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/brazil/2005.