Economy transitioning to new development cycle, says minister
Minister Nelson Barbosa -
The Minister of Planning, Budgeting and Management, Nelson Barbosa, says Brazil is experiencing a stage that will lead to a “new development cycle.” “Brazilian economy has stayed dynamic, Brazil remains a continental-scale country, and there are plenty of opportunities out there for Brazilian and foreign businesses,” Barbosa said at the kick-off of the International Meeting on Infrastructure and PPP's held by the Brazilian Chamber of Construction Industry.
Speaking to Brazilian and foreign investors and construction industry business leaders in Latin America and Europe, the Minister said that the National Development Bank (BNDES) and the private sector should partner to leverage investment in the country. “The bank will keep an important focus on restructuring financing in partnership with the private sector. We want to create synergy between them,” he said.
Talking about the current economic crisis, he said the country usually recovers quickly. “Brazil has traditionally been able to recover quickly following a period adjusting to the changes in the domestic and global scenario. We saw that happen back in 1999, when we had a difficult year and the economy grew stronger in 2000. The same happened in 2003 and 2009. The economy recovered in subsequent years.”
About the country's plans to invest in infrastructure, Barbosa said concession tenders have been approved for two railways – one of them will interlink the Central West, and the other one will link Rio de Janeiro to Espírito Santo. And later this year, the airports of Salvador, Florianópolis and Porto Alegre will start being operated by the private sector.
The minister pointed out that the country is planning to invest about $4.1 billion in highways and is considering other public-private partnerships (PPP's) for highway networks in Northeast Brazil. “We see PPP's as a more suitable model for certain highways. There are good investment opportunities for concessions.”
Translated by Mayra Borges
Fonte: Economy transitioning to new development cycle, says minister
