Insecurity the “Achilles’ Heel of Development” in Latin America

Development experts here are warning that widespread, unchecked violence against citizens in Latin America is posing a threat to the development of the entire region.

Q&A: Brazil’s School Meals Teach Good Eating Habits

Providing school meals for 45 million children is a remarkable achievement for Brazil. But the programme faces specific difficulties, as well as the generic problems plaguing any national plan in this vast country of more than 192 million people.

Dependent on Venezuela’s Oil Diplomacy

Venezuela’s economic challenges, more than the uncertainty over who will succeed late president Hugo Chávez, could threaten the oil diplomacy he practiced in the region.

Q&A: Rise of South “Unprecedented in Speed and Scale”

The world's 132 developing nations, largely part of the global South, are ascending at a pace “unprecedented in its speed and scale", according to the latest Human Development Report (HDR) released Thursday by the U.N. Development Programme (UNDP).

Brazilian-Made Plastic Solar Panels, a Clean Energy Breakthrough

As part of the country’s growing emphasis on green tech research, Brazilian scientists have developed plastic solar panels that could revolutionise power generation from this clean, renewable energy source.

Controversy Erupts Over “Corporate Carnival”

A transnational pesticides manufacturer is sponsoring the Vila Isabel samba school, which won the main contest in Rio de Janeiro's carnival this year, raising questions about financing mechanisms for "the greatest show on earth", as carnival is described in Brazil.

Brazilian Ethanol in the Slow Lane to Global Market

Following a promising start, Brazil's dream of positioning ethanol in the global market on an equal standing with petroleum-based fuels is hindered by new and old challenges.

Brazilian President Stumbles on Energy

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, whose political career was fuelled by her stellar performance in the energy sector, is now faced with an ironic challenge: how to bring down the unusually high price of electricity predominantly generated by hydropower – the cheapest source – in this South American country of 196.6 million people.

Murder of Landless Workers’ Leader Recalls Brazil’s Dictatorship

The execution-style killing of a leader of the Landless Workers' Movement in a sugarcane plantation in the southeastern Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro, where bodies of opponents of the dictatorship were incinerated in the 1970s, recalls one of the most tragic chapters in this country's history.

Exorcising the Ghosts of Brazil’s Dictatorship

At 8 a.m. on Oct. 25, 1975, Brazilian journalist Vladimir Herzog voluntarily reported to the São Paulo headquarters of the government's intelligence agency and was never seen alive again.

Building Angolan-Brazilian Ties on Infrastructure

Brazil has turned to large infrastructure as a unique way to globally expand its economy and build up its political influence, with the added bonus of furthering the development of small nations. But this strategy is not without its risks.

Rio Maps Flood Risk to Avert Annual Disaster

Hoping to prevent the tragedies that have become an annual event every rainy season, authorities in the southeastern Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro plan to require that municipal governments include environmental risk mapping in their infrastructure projects, in order to prohibit construction in vulnerable areas.

BRICS Invest in National Priorities

A leading South African economist and investment strategist has warned that national priorities may be a more compelling factor influencing business decisions in the BRICS group of countries – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – than the prospects of increased market access through the alliance.

South Africa-Brazil Trade Partnership Hits Potholes

As the five members of the BRICS group of emerging economies – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – tighten ranks and seek to expand their global influence, the inevitable trade spats have begun.