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Communications

Airports [time series]

3,563 total, 2,911 usable; 420 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 22 with runways 2,240-3,659 m; 550 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air [time series]

198 major transport aircraft

Roadways (Highways) [time series]

1,448,000 km total; 48,000 km paved, 1,400,000 km gravel or earth

Waterways (Inland waterways) [time series]

50,000 km navigable

Merchant marine [time series]

245 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,693,500 GRT/9,623,918 DWT; includes 3 passenger-cargo, 49 cargo, 1 refrigerated cargo, 13 container, 9 roll-on/roll-off, 57 petroleum tanker, 15 chemical tanker, 11 liquefied gas, 14 combination ore/oil, 71 bulk, 2 combination bulk; in addition, 2 naval tankers and 4 military transport are sometimes used commercially

Pipelines [time series]

crude oil 2,000 km; petroleum products 3,804 km; natural gas 1,095 km

Ports [time series]

Belem, Fortaleza, Ilheus, Manaus, Paranagua, Porto Alegre, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande, Salvador, Santos

Railways (Railroads) [time series]

28,828 km total; 24,864 km 1.000-meter gauge, 3,877 km 1.600-meter gauge, 74 km mixed 1.600-1.000-meter gauge, 13 km 0.760-meter gauge; 2,360 km electrified

Telecommunication systems (Telecommunications) [time series]

good system; extensive radio relay facilities; 9.86 million telephones; broadcast stations - 1,223 AM, no FM, 112 TV, 151 shortwave; 3 coaxial submarine cables, 3 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations and 64 domestic satellite earth stations

Defense Forces

Military and security forces (Branches) [time series]

Brazilian Army, Navy of Brazil (including Marines), Brazilian Air Force, Military Police (paramilitary)

Military expenditures (Defense expenditures) [time series]

exchange rate conversion - $1.1 billion, 0.3% of GDP (1990)

Manpower availability [time series]

males 15-49, 41,515,103; 27,987,257 fit for military service; 1,644,571 reach military age (18) annually

Economy

Agricultural products (Agriculture) [time series]

world's largest producer and exporter of coffee and orange juice concentrate and second- largest exporter of soybeans; other products - rice, corn, sugarcane, cocoa, beef; self-sufficient in food, except for wheat

Budget [time series]

revenues $164.3 billion; expenditures $170.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $32.9 billion (1990)

Exchange rates (Currency) [time series]

cruzeiro (plural - cruzeiros); 1 cruzeiro (Cr$) = 100 centavos

Economic aid [time series]

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $2.5 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $10.2 million; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $284 million; former Communist countries (1970-89), $1.3 billion

Electricity [time series]

58,500,000 kW capacity; 229,824 million kWh produced, 1,479 kWh per capita (1991)

Exchange rates [time series]

cruzeiros (Cr$) per US$1 - 1,197.38 (January 1992), 406.61 (1991), 68.300 (1990), 2.834 (1989), 0.26238 (1988), 0.03923 (1987)

Exports [time series]

$31.6 billion (1991) commodities: iron ore, soybean bran, orange juice, footwear, coffee partners: EC 31%, US 24%, Latin America 11%, Japan 8% (1990)

Debt - external (External debt) [time series]

$118 billion (December 1991)

Fiscal year [time series]

calendar year

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) (GDP) [time series]

exchange rate conversion - $358 billion, per capita $2,300; real growth rate 1.2% (1991)

Illicit drugs [time series]

illicit producer of cannabis and coca, mostly for domestic consumption; government has a modest eradication program to control cannabis and coca cultivation; important transshipment country for Bolivian and Colombian cocaine headed for the US and Europe

Imports [time series]

$21.0 billion (1991) commodities: crude oil, capital goods, chemical products, foodstuffs, coal partners: Middle East and Africa 22%, US 21%, EC 21%, Latin America 18%, Japan 6% (1990)

Industrial production growth rate (Industrial production) [time series]

growth rate--0.5% (1991); accounts for 39% of GDP

Industries [time series]

textiles and other consumer goods, shoes, chemicals, cement, lumber, iron ore, steel, motor vehicles and auto parts, metalworking, capital goods, tin

Inflation rate (consumer prices) [time series]

478.5% (December 1991, annual rate)

Economic overview (Overview) [time series]

The economy, with large agrarian, mining, and manufacturing sectors, entered the 1990s with declining real growth, runaway inflation, an unserviceable foreign debt of $122 billion, and a lack of policy direction. In addition, the economy remained highly regulated, inward-looking, and protected by substantial trade and investment barriers. Ownership of major industrial and mining facilities is divided among private interests - including several multinationals - and the government. Most large agricultural holdings are private, with the government channeling financing to this sector. Conflicts between large landholders and landless peasants have produced intermittent violence. The Collor government, which assumed office in March 1990, is embarked on an ambitious reform program that seeks to modernize and reinvigorate the economy by stabilizing prices, deregulating the economy, and opening it to increased foreign competition. The government in December 1991 signed a letter of intent with the IMF for a 20-month standby loan. Having reached an agreement on the repayment of interest arrears accumulated during 1989 and 1990, Brazilian officials and commercial bankers are engaged in talks on the reduction of medium- and long-term debt and debt service payments and on the elimination of remaining interest arrears. A major long-run strength is Brazil's vast natural resources.

Unemployment rate [time series]

4.3% (1991)

Geography

Climate [time series]

mostly tropical, but temperate in south

Coastline [time series]

7,491 km

Area - comparative (Comparative area) [time series]

slightly smaller than the US

Disputes - international (Disputes) [time series]

short section of the boundary with Paraguay (just west of Guaira Falls on the Rio Parana) is in dispute; two short sections of boundary with Uruguay are in dispute (Arroyo de la Invernada area of the Rio Quarai and the islands at the confluence of the Rio Quarai and the Uruguay)

Environment - current issues (Environment) [time series]

recurrent droughts in northeast; floods and frost in south; deforestation in Amazon basin; air and water pollution in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo

Area (Land area) [time series]

8,456,510 km2; includes Arquipelago de Fernando de Noronha, Atol das Rocas, Ilha da Trindade, Ilhas Martin Vaz, and Penedos de Sao Pedro e Sao Paulo

Land boundaries [time series]

14,691 km; 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

Land use [time series]

arable land 7%; permanent crops 1%; meadows and pastures 19%; forest and woodland 67%; other 6%; includes irrigated NEGL%

Maritime claims [time series]

Continental shelf: 200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm Territorial sea: 200 nm

Natural resources [time series]

iron ore, manganese, bauxite, nickel, uranium, phosphates, tin, hydropower, gold, platinum, crude oil, timber

Note [time series]

largest country in South America; shares common boundaries with every South American country except Chile and Ecuador

Terrain [time series]

mostly flat to rolling lowlands in north; some plains, hills, mountains, and narrow coastal belt

Area (Total area) [time series]

8,511,965 km2

Government

Administrative divisions [time series]

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; note - the former territories of Amapa and Roraima became states in January 1991

Capital [time series]

Brasilia

Political parties (Communists) [time series]

less than 30,000

Constitution [time series]

5 October 1988

Diplomatic representation in the US (Diplomatic representation) [time series]

Ambassador Rubens RICUPERO; Chancery at 3006 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008; telephone (202) 745-2700; there are Brazilian Consulates General in Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, and New York, and Consulates in Dallas, Houston, and San Francisco US: Ambassador Richard MELTON; Embassy at Avenida das Nacoes, Lote 3, Brasilia, Distrito Federal (mailing address is APO AA 34030); telephone [55] (61) 321-7272; FAX [55] (61) 225-9136; there are US Consulates General in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, and Consulates in PortoAlegre and Recife

Executive branch (Elections) [time series]

Chamber of Deputies: last held 3 October 1990 (next to be held November 1994); results - PMDB 21%, PFL 17%, PDT 9%, PDS 8%, PRN 7.9%, PTB 7%, PT 7%, other 23.1%; seats - (503 total as of 3 February 1991) PMDB 108, PFL 87, PDT 46, PDS 43, PRN 40, PTB 35, PT 35, other 109 Federal Senate: last held 3 October 1990 (next to be held November 1994); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (81 total as of 3 February 1991) PMDB 27, PFL 15, PSDB 10, PTB 8, PDT 5, other 16 President: last held 15 November 1989, with runoff on 17 December 1989 (next to be held November 1994); results - Fernando COLLOR de Mello 53%, Luis Inacio da SILVA 47%; note - first free, direct presidential election since 1960

Executive branch [time series]

president, vice president, Cabinet

Flag [time series]

green with a large yellow diamond in the center bearing a blue celestial globe with 23 white five-pointed stars (one for each state) 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)

Independence [time series]

7 September 1822 (from Portugal)

Judicial branch [time series]

Supreme Federal Tribunal

Executive branch (Leaders) [time series]

Chief of State and Head of Government: President Fernando Affonso COLLOR de Mello (since 15 March 1990); Vice President Itamar FRANCO (since 15 March 1990)

Legal system [time series]

based on Latin codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch [time series]

bicameral National Congress (Congresso Nacional) consists of an upper chamber or Federal Senate (Senado Federal) and a lower chamber or Chamber of Deputies (Camara dos Deputados)

Country name (Long-form name) [time series]

Federative Republic of Brazil

International organization participation (Member of) [time series]

AfDB, AG (observer), CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, LORCS, MERCOSUR, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNAVEM, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WFTU, WIPO, WMO, WTO

National holiday [time series]

Independence Day, 7 September (1822)

Political parties (Other political or pressure groups) [time series]

left wing of the Catholic Church and labor unions allied to leftist Worker's Party are critical of government's social and economic policies

Political parties (Political parties and leaders) [time series]

National Reconstruction Party (PRN), Daniel TOURINHO, president; Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB), Orestes QUERCIA, president; Liberal Front Party (PFL), Hugo NAPOLEAO, president; Workers' Party (PT), Luis Ignacio (Lula) da SILVA, president; Brazilian Labor Party (PTB), Luiz GONZAGA de Paiva Muniz, president; Democratic Labor Party (PDT), Leonel BRIZOLA, president; Democratic Social Party (PPS), Paulo MALUF, president; Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB), Tasso JEREISSATI, president; Popular Socialist Party (PPS), Roberto FREIRE, president; Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB), Joao AMAZONAS, secretary general; Christian Democratic Party (PDC), Siqueira CAMPOS, president

Suffrage [time series]

voluntary at age 16; compulsory between ages 18 and 70; voluntary at age 70

Government type (Type) [time series]

federal republic

People

Birth rate [time series]

25 births/1,000 population (1992)

Death rate [time series]

7 deaths/1,000 population (1992)

Ethnic groups (Ethnic divisions) [time series]

Portuguese, Italian, German, Japanese, black, Amerindian; white 55%, mixed 38%, black 6%, other 1%

Infant mortality rate [time series]

67 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)

Labor force [time series]

57,000,000 (1989 est.); services 42%, agriculture 31%, industry 27%

Languages [time series]

Portuguese (official), Spanish, English, French

Life expectancy at birth [time series]

62 years male, 69 years female (1992)

Literacy [time series]

81% (male 82%, female 80%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Nationality [time series]

noun - Brazilian(s); adjective - Brazilian

Net migration rate [time series]

0 migrants/1,000 population (1992)

Organized labor [time series]

13,000,000 dues paying members (1989 est.)

Population [time series]

158,202,019 (July 1992), growth rate 1.8% (1992)

Religions [time series]

Roman Catholic (nominal) 90%

Total fertility rate [time series]

3.0 children born/woman (1992)