Brazil

total:

58.07 cu km/yr (28%/17%/55%)

per capita:

306 cu m/yr (2006)

• 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

noun:

Brazilian(s)

adjective:

Brazilian

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.03 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

0.98 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.97 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.74 male(s)/female

total population:

0.98 male(s)/female (2014 est.)

total number:

959,942

percentage:

3 %

note: data represents children ages 5-13 (2009 est.)

conventional long form:

Federative Republic of Brazil

conventional short form:

Brazil

local long form:

Republica Federativa do Brasil

local short form:

Brasil

name:

Brasilia

geographic coordinates:

15 47 S, 47 55 W

time difference:

UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins third Sunday in October; ends third Sunday in February

note: Brazil has three time zones, including one for the Fernando de Noronha Islands

• 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

• several previous;
• latest ratified 5 October 1988;
• amended many times, last in 2012 (2012)

• voluntary between 16 to under 18 years of age and over 70;
• compulsory 18 to 70 years of age;
• note - military conscripts by law cannot vote

chief of state:

• President Dilma ROUSSEFF (since 1 January 2011);
• Vice President Michel Miguel Elias TEMER Lulia (since 1 January 2011);
• note - the president is both chief of state and head of government

head of government:

President Dilma ROUSSEFF (since 1 January 2011); Vice President Michel Miguel Elias TEMER Lulia (since 1 January 2011)

cabinet:

Cabinet appointed by the president; (For more information visit theWorld Leaders website)

elections:

• president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a single four-year term;
• election last held on 3 October 2010 with runoff on 31 October 2010 (next to be held on 5 October 2014 and, if necessary, a runoff election on 26 October 2014)

election results:

Dilma ROUSSEFF (PT) elected president in a runoff election; percent of vote - Dilma ROUSSEFF 56.01%, Jose SERRA (PSDB) 43.99%

highest court(s):

Supreme Federal Court (consists of 11 justices)

judge selection and term of office:

justices appointed by the president and approved by the Federal Senate; justices appointed to serve until mandatory retirement at age 70

subordinate courts:

Federal Appeals Court, Superior Court of Justice, Superior Electoral Court, regional federal courts; state court system

AfDB (nonregional member), BIS, BRICS, CAN (associate), CD, CELAC, CPLP, FAO, FATF, G-15, G-20, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAES, LAIA, LAS (observer), Mercosur, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS, OECD (Enhanced Engagement, OPANAL, OPCW, Paris Club (associate), PCA, SICA (observer), UN, UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, Union Latina, UNISFA, UNITAR, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNMIT, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

chief of mission:

Ambassador Mauro Luiz Iecker VIEIRA (since 11 January 2010)

chancery:

3006 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 238-2805

FAX:

[1] (202) 238-2827

consulate(s) general:

Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Hartford (CT), Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco

chief of mission:

Ambassador Liliana AYALDE (since 1 August 2013)

embassy:

Avenida das Nacoes, Quadra 801, Lote 3, Distrito Federal Cep 70403-900, Brasilia

mailing address:

Unit 7500, DPO, AA 34030

telephone:

[55] (61) 3312-7000

FAX:

[55] (61) 3225-9136

consulate(s) general:

Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo

consulate(s):

Recife

• green with a large yellow diamond in the center bearing a blue celestial globe with 27 white five-pointed stars;
• the globe has a white equatorial band with the motto ORDEM E PROGRESSO (Order and Progress);
• the current flag was inspired by the banner of the former Empire of Brazil (1822-1889);
• on the imperial flag, the green represented the House of Braganza of Pedro I, the first Emperor of Brazil, while the yellow stood for the Habsburg Family of his wife;
• on the modern flag the green represents the forests of the country and the yellow rhombus its mineral wealth;
• the blue circle and stars, which replaced the coat of arms of the original flag, depict the sky over Rio de Janeiro on the morning of 15 November 1889 - the day the Republic of Brazil was declared;
• the number of stars has changed with the creation of new states and has risen from an original 21 to the current 27 (one for each state and the Federal District)

agriculture:

15.7%

industry:

13.3%

services:

71%

(2011 est.)

lowest 10%:

0.8%

highest 10%:

42.9% (2009 est.)

general assessment:

good working system including an extensive microwave radio relay system and a domestic satellite system with 64 earth stations

domestic:

• fixed-line connections have remained relatively stable in recent years and stand at about 20 per 100 persons;
• less expensive mobile-cellular technology has been a major driver in expanding telephone service to the lower-income segments of the population with mobile-cellular teledensity roughly 120 per 100 persons

international:

• country code - 55;
• landing point for a number of submarine cables, including Americas-1, Americas-2, Atlantis-2, GlobeNet, South America-1, South American Crossing/Latin American Nautilus, and UNISUR that provide direct connectivity to South and Central America, the Caribbean, the US, Africa, and Europe;
• 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 (2011)

• state-run Radiobras operates a radio and a TV network;
• more than 1,000 radio stations and more than 100 TV channels operating - mostly privately owned;
• private media ownership highly concentrated (2007)

• condensate/gas 251 km;
• gas 17,312 km;
• liquid petroleum gas 352 km;
• oil 4,831 km;
• refined products 4,722 km (2013)

total:

28,538 km

country comparison to the world: 10

broad gauge:

5,627 km 1.600-m gauge (467 km electrified)

standard gauge:

194 km 1.440-m gauge

narrow gauge:

22,717 km 1.000-m gauge (2008)

total:

1,580,964 km

country comparison to the world: 4

paved:

212,798 km

unpaved:

1,368,166 km

note: does not include urban roads (2010)

major seaport(s):

Belem, Paranagua, Rio Grande, Rio de Janeiro, Santos, Sao Sebastiao, Tubarao

river port(s):

Manaus (Amazon)

dry bulk cargo port(s):

Sepetiba ore terminal

container ports (TEUs):

Santos (2,985,922), Itajai (983,985)(2011)

oil/gas terminal(s):

DTSE/Gegua oil terminal, Ilha Grande (Gebig), Guaiba Island terminal, Guamare oil terminal

LNG terminal(s) (import):

Pecem, Rio de Janiero

• 18-45 years of age for compulsory military service;
• conscript service obligation is 9-12 months;
• 17-45 years of age for voluntary service;
• an increasing percentage of the ranks are "long-service" volunteer professionals;
• women were allowed to serve in the armed forces beginning in early 1980s when the Brazilian Army became the first army in South America to accept women into career ranks;
• women serve in Navy and Air Force only in Women's Reserve Corps (2012)

males age 16-49:

53,350,703

females age 16-49:

53,433,918 (2010 est.)

males age 16-49:

38,993,989

females age 16-49:

44,841,661 (2010 est.)

male:

1,733,168

female:

1,672,477 (2010 est.)

• uncontested boundary dispute between Brazil and Uruguay over Braziliera/Brasiliera Island in the Quarai/Cuareim River leaves the tripoint with Argentina in question;
• smuggling of firearms and narcotics continues to be an issue along the Uruguay-Brazil border;
• Colombian-organized illegal narcotics and paramilitary activities penetrate Brazil's border region with Venezuela

• second-largest consumer of cocaine in the world;
• illicit producer of cannabis;
• trace amounts of 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;
• 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 are often laundered through the financial system;
• significant illicit financial activity in the Tri-Border Area (2008)