Brazil: an analysis
...f the republic is Brasilia. The constitution of Brazil was drafted on October 5, 1988. The Brazilian constitution allowed for an executive, legislative, and judicial branch of government. (3) Brazil’s economy is the ninth largest economy in the world. It “possess[es] [a] large and well-developed agricultural, mining, manufacturing, and service sectors” in comparison with all other South American countries. The Brazilian income per capita is approximately $2000. Because Brazil is a developing country, it is attempting to industrialize and bring increased revenue and foreign investment to the country. The Brazilian industry is currently producing “textiles, shoes, chemicals, cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, steel, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, other machinery and equipment” for domestic consumption as well as export products. Agriculturally, Brazilian products contributing to the economy are: “coffee, soybeans, wheat, rice, corns, sugarcane, cocoa, citrus, and beef.” Brazil is currently importing $61.4 billion in commodities while it is only exporting $53 billion in commodities. (6) Despite the increase in production that Brazil has been enjoying over the past few decades, the percentage of Brazilian families living in absolute poverty ranges from 55% in southern cities such as Curitiba to 77% in the northeastern cities such as Recife (6). According to Urbanization in Large Developing Countries, “the poor population is concentrated in the northeast, which holds about 30% of the total population and about half of its rural population, but there are also huge pockets of urban and rural poverty in the richest regions” (7). This observation corroborates the belief that poverty in Brazil is not concentrated to a single area. Indigence is prevalent throughout the nation. Brazil’s agricultural economy started out in the early colonial days as a single crop exporter. Sugar was the main crop produced in Brazil mainly for export. Brazilian agriculture has expanded considerably over this century. During the 1970s especially, a rise in production was seen throughout Brazil as farmers began to expand their crops. According to Werner Baer, author of The Brazilian Economy: It’s Growth and Development, “[Brazil] is the world’s largest sugar producer and the second largest exporter of soybeans.” Other products abundant to Brazil’s agriculture are orange juice concentrate, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, rubber, and cotton. (1) Today, Brazilian leaders have taken great pains to promote programs that would diversify crop growth and, therefore, make Brazil more attractive to foreign consumers. By promoting crop diversity, Brazilian leaders have successfully increased the production of grains including wheat, rice, corn, and particularly soybeans (8). Brazil’s soils support a large quantity of agricultural products. Brazil also has a vast amount of mineral resources, particularly iron, aluminum, tin, manganese, and oil deposits (2). Education in Brazil is, unfortunately, not one of the aspects of the nation that natives can brag about. According to Desenvolvimento: Politics and Economy in Brazil, “Investment in education in Brazil has had a low priority in relation to its investment value” (4). In other words, officials in Brazil have not placed enough emphasis on the profound importance of education to its country. This theory is demonstrated in the budgets placed on educational facilities making schools inadequate for teaching the youth effectively. It is also indicated in the increasingly low salaries given to teachers in Brazilian classrooms. Finally, it is also confirmed in the malnutrition of the students. Their hunger causes poor attention spans and makes learning unproductive (4). In a 1995 estimate, the adult male literacy rate in Brazil was calculated at 83.3% while the adult female literacy rate in Brazil was approximated at 83.2% (3). Brazilians that live in the Northeast live in what was once known as Brazil’s “culture hearth.” During colonial days, Portuguese plantation owners worked the land along with their slaves in order to make ends meet. Today, however, the “Northeast is poverty-stricken, hunger afflicted, overpopulated, and subject to devastating droughts.” The region does, nonetheless, have a satisfactory supply of groundwater. Unfortunately, the peasant farmers of that region cannot afford to drill holes into the surface in order to distribute the water among the thirsty. (2) The Southeast region of Brazil is a blatant contradiction with its northeastern counterpart. The Southeastern topography is more diverse. There is more rainfall and the seasons are to be relied upon. This region’s arable land and adequate contiguous water supply make the region especially beneficial to agriculture. The Gold Rush brought many people to the Southeastern portion of Brazil. Cities sprouted up along coastlines and the populations increased quite rapidly. (2) The Southern region in Brazil has fertile land for vineyards and rice and grain farms. Because of the abundant crop growth in Southern Brazil, the markets have expanded to the north bringing increased revenue to the region. In this region, German and Italian are still spoken fluently reminding tourists of colonial days. (2) Brazil’s interior is made up of mostly rural area. Brazilian leaders as well as foreign developers have attempted to reduce the population in overcrowded coastal cities by persuading them to move to the more rural interior. Brazil’s capital city was intentionally placed near this area in an attempt to move people out of the cities. The interior’s fertile land has yet to be developed, much to the dismay of investors. (2) Brazil has a very large income gap. While the rich get richer, the poor definitely get poorer. Many people do not have access to a safe supply of nutritious foods at all times. These people experience food insecurity on a daily basis. Those who are hungry are this way because there is simply not enough food to sustain them. Malnutrition is the result of an unhealthy diet. Many Brazilians suffering from malnutrition endure Vitamin A deficiency which causes night blindness. Research suggests that 80% of all leprosy cases in South America are concentrated in Brazil. Leprosy develops in what is known...