Biggest Latin American defense expo kicks off in Rio

Starting Tuesday (Apr. 2) in Rio de Janeiro, over 210 manufacturers and suppliers in the defense industry are expected to gather at the Laad Defence & Security 2019, referred to as the “leading Latin American Defence and Security exhibition.” Over 37 thousand visitors from 80 countries (183 official delegations) are likely to attend.

The sector is reported to generate 60 thousand direct jobs and 240 thousand indirect jobs in Brazil, with $52 billion being handled every year—four percent of the country’s GDP. Six of every ten dollars spent on security or defense in Brazil come from the government, especially the Armed Forces.

The 12th edition of the Laad Defense and & Security takes place amid manufacturers’ optimism regarding the growth in figures expected in the coming years. In addition to regular exercises on warfare, the control and monitoring of the Brazilian territory (the world’s fifth largest), and special missions, Brazil’s Armed Forces need technological equipment for activities such as air traffic control, infrastructure projects, transport, border patrol, anti-crime measures, and coast guard.

“We’re more optimistic about the future outlook of the apparatus of the Armed Forces through supplies of the Brazilian industry,” said Glauco Côrte, chairman of the Defense Industry Theme Council, a consultative agency with Brazil’s National Confederation of Industry (CNI). “The current government views defense expenditures as strategic,” head of the Brazilian Defense and Security Industries Association Roberto Gallo added.

Approved budget

Brazil’s defense industry hopes the government to stick to the budget approved for the Armed Forces by Congress. Roberto Gallo said that “maybe more important than the amount of funds is the predictability and the duration of expenditures.” Perennial funding, he argued, is crucial to keeping the sector productive.

“The defense industry is essentially technological. This means that, in order to start manufacturing something, a cycle of research and development is necessary; then, for manufacturing and providing material, another cycle is required, that of services and support,” he pointed out.

In the last five years, actual spending on National Defense stood below the budget, as per official figures. From 2015 to 2018, some $9 billion was spared.

“Dangerously outdated”

General Eduardo Villas Bôas, former Army commander and current special adviser with the president’s Office for Institutional Security, believes the absence of imminent military confrontation makes it more difficult to raise awareness about the need for earmarking funds for defense.

In a meeting held in Brasília on March 27, Villas Bôas said Brazil is becoming “dangerously outdated” in its defense apparatus. According to CNI’s council, the country ranks 11 in military spending. The amount spent, however, accounts for two percent of the globe’s military expenditures.

According to Rodrigo Fracalossi, defense expert with the Institute for Applied Economic Research (Ipea), the present moment may require more attention to the demands of the Armed Forces in the long run. “The current political landscape favors the involvement of the Armed Forces in several fields.”