Portuguese (official), Spanish, English, French
_#_Literacy: 81% (male 82%, female 80%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
_#_Labor force: 57,000,000 (1989 est.); services 42%, agriculture 31%, industry 27%
_#_Organized labor: 13,000,000 dues paying members (1989 est.)
_*Government #_Long-form name: Federative Republic of Brazil
_#_Type: federal republic
_#_Capital: Brasilia
_#_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; note—the former territories of Amapa and
Roraima became states in January 1991
_#_Independence: 7 September 1822 (from Portugal)
_#_Constitution: 5 October 1988
_#_Legal system: based on Latin codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
_#_National holiday: Independence Day, 7 September (1822)
_#_Executive branch: president, vice president, Cabinet
_#_Legislative branch: 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)
_#_Judicial branch: Supreme Federal Tribunal
_#_Leaders:
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)
_#_Political parties and leaders:
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 (PDS), Amaral NETTO, president;
Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB), Mario COVAS, president;
Brazilian Communist Party (PCB), Salomao MALINA, secretary general;
Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB), Joao AMAZONAS, president;
Christian Democratic Party (PDC), Eduardo CAMPOS, president
_#_Suffrage: voluntary at age 16; compulsory between ages 18 and 70; voluntary at age 70
_#_Elections:
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;
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;
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;
_#_Communists: about 30,000
_#_Other political or pressure groups: left wing of the Catholic Church and labor unions allied to leftist Worker's Party are critical of government's social and economic policies
_#_Member of: AfDB, AG (observer), CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, 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, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNAVEM,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
_#_Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Marcilio Marques MOREIRA; Chancery at 3006 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 745–2700; there are Brazilian Consulates General in Atlanta, 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 Nocoes,
Lote 3, Brasilia, Distrito Federal (mailing address is APO Miami 34030);
telephone [55] (6) 321–7272; there are US Consulates General in Rio de
Janeiro and Sao Paulo, and Consulates in Porto Alegre and Recife
_#_Flag: 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)
_*Economy #_Overview: 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 government is seeking an IMF standby loan despite several failed agreements over the past decade. Relations with foreign commercial banks remain strained because of mounting interest arrears on Brazil's long-term debt. 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. A major long-run strength is Brazil's vast natural resources.
