HOW TO ACHIEVE TRUE INDEPENDENCE FOR BRAZIL TO REVERSE ITS SECULAR ECONOMIC DEPENDENCE.pdf
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About This Presentation
This article aims to present how Brazil can achieve true independence and free itself from its centuries-old economic dependence, from the colonial period to the present day. Brazil celebrates 203 years of independence from Portuguese colonial rule, and there is no reason to celebrate because the co...
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HOW TO ACHIEVE TRUE INDEPENDENCE FOR BRAZIL TO REVERSE ITS
SECULAR ECONOMIC DEPENDENCE
Fernando Alcoforado*
This article aims to present how Brazil can achieve true independence and free itself from
its secular economic dependence, from the colonial period to the present day. Brazil
celebrates 203 years of independence from Portuguese colonial rule, and there is no
reason to celebrate because the country remains economically dependent on foreign
countries. Historically, Brazil has faced two forms of dependence: the first, dependence
on the Portuguese Empire, British imperialism, and North American imperialism from
1500 to 1990; and the second, dependence on the globalized capitalist system from 1990
to the present day. From 1500 to 1810, Brazil was dominated by the Portuguese colonial
empire, from 1810 to 1929 by the British Empire, from 1945 to 1990 by North American
imperialism, and from 1990 to the present, by globalized capitalism. Only from 1930 to
1945, during the Getúlio Vargas administration, was there no external interference in
Brazil's development because the major capitalist powers were busy trying to overcome
the Great Depression that began in 1929 and, shortly thereafter, became involved in
World War II from 1939 to 1945.
The proclamation of Brazilian Independence on September 7, 1822, differed from the
experience of other countries in the Americas because it did not exhibit the characteristics
of a typical national-liberating revolutionary process, which only effectively manifested
itself on July 2, 1823, when Portuguese troops were expelled from Bahia and Brazil
thanks to the revolutionary struggle of the Bahian people. The heroic struggle of the
people of Bahia in 1823 was motivated by the ideals of liberalism and the great
revolutions of the late 18th century. Despite the heroic struggle of the people of Bahia in
1823, Brazil's independence from Portugal was an "independence without economic and
social revolution" because there were no changes to the country's economic foundation.
The state that emerged from Brazil's independence maintained the detestable latifundia
that persists to this day and intensified the no less detestable slavery that lasted for over
300 years until 1888, making it the foundation of the economic structures inherited from
the colonial period.
Brazil's independence was, therefore, an "independence without revolution" because
there were no changes to the nation's economic foundation. Brazil's independence was
not a conquest of the Brazilian people, but rather granted by Portugal and paid for by the
Brazilian government to the country that colonized it for 322 years. Brazil's independence
in 1822 was, therefore, a false independence. After independence from Portugal, Brazil
was governed by a monarchical empire that ended in 1889 with the Proclamation of the
Republic, which did not result from the struggle of the Brazilian people but rather from a
coup d'état sponsored by the Army with the support of the economic oligarchies that
dominated the country at the end of the 19th century. The Republic, born of a coup d'état,
maintained the agrarian-export economic model that had privileged the interests of the
oligarchies since 1500, with the detestable latifundia inherited from the colonial period,
and maintained the country's subordination to England, which had existed since 1810,
following the arrival of the Portuguese royal family in Brazil. British rule from 1810 to
1929 and the agrarian-export model, which was structured based on latifundia and slave
labor during the colonial period, constituted a gigantic obstacle to Brazil's development.
The first attempt to promote Brazil's economic emancipation, with a national economy
independent of the global market and subordinated to international capital and the major
HOW TO ACHIEVE TRUE INDEPENDENCE FOR BRAZIL TO REVERSE ITS
SECULAR ECONOMIC DEPENDENCE
Fernando Alcoforado*
This article aims to present how Brazil can achieve true independence and free itself from
its secular economic dependence, from the colonial period to the present day. Brazil
celebrates 203 years of independence from Portuguese colonial rule, and there is no
reason to celebrate because the country remains economically dependent on foreign
countries. Historically, Brazil has faced two forms of dependence: the first, dependence
on the Portuguese Empire, British imperialism, and North American imperialism from
1500 to 1990; and the second, dependence on the globalized capitalist system from 1990
to the present day. From 1500 to 1810, Brazil was dominated by the Portuguese colonial
empire, from 1810 to 1929 by the British Empire, from 1945 to 1990 by North American
imperialism, and from 1990 to the present, by globalized capitalism. Only from 1930 to
1945, during the Getúlio Vargas administration, was there no external interference in
Brazil's development because the major capitalist powers were busy trying to overcome
the Great Depression that began in 1929 and, shortly thereafter, became involved in
World War II from 1939 to 1945.
The proclamation of Brazilian Independence on September 7, 1822, differed from the
experience of other countries in the Americas because it did not exhibit the characteristics
of a typical national-liberating revolutionary process, which only effectively manifested
itself on July 2, 1823, when Portuguese troops were expelled from Bahia and Brazil
thanks to the revolutionary struggle of the Bahian people. The heroic struggle of the
people of Bahia in 1823 was motivated by the ideals of liberalism and the great
revolutions of the late 18th century. Despite the heroic struggle of the people of Bahia in
1823, Brazil's independence from Portugal was an "independence without economic and
social revolution" because there were no changes to the country's economic foundation.
The state that emerged from Brazil's independence maintained the detestable latifundia
that persists to this day and intensified the no less detestable slavery that lasted for over
300 years until 1888, making it the foundation of the economic structures inherited from
the colonial period.
Brazil's independence was, therefore, an "independence without revolution" because
there were no changes to the nation's economic foundation. Brazil's independence was
not a conquest of the Brazilian people, but rather granted by Portugal and paid for by the
Brazilian government to the country that colonized it for 322 years. Brazil's independence
in 1822 was, therefore, a false independence. After independence from Portugal, Brazil
was governed by a monarchical empire that ended in 1889 with the Proclamation of the
Republic, which did not result from the struggle of the Brazilian people but rather from a
coup d'état sponsored by the Army with the support of the economic oligarchies that
dominated the country at the end of the 19th century. The Republic, born of a coup d'état,
maintained the agrarian-export economic model that had privileged the interests of the
oligarchies since 1500, with the detestable latifundia inherited from the colonial period,
and maintained the country's subordination to England, which had existed since 1810,
following the arrival of the Portuguese royal family in Brazil. British rule from 1810 to
1929 and the agrarian-export model, which was structured based on latifundia and slave
labor during the colonial period, constituted a gigantic obstacle to Brazil's development.
The first attempt to promote Brazil's economic emancipation, with a national economy
independent of the global market and subordinated to international capital and the major
2
capitalist powers, was undertaken by President Getúlio Vargas. He came to power with
the so-called 1930 revolution that ended the "Old Republic," which existed from 1889 to
1930. His government adopted a nationalist policy from 1930 to 1945. From 1930 to
1945, there was no external interference in Brazil's development by the major powers
because they were all committed to overcoming the global economic depression of 1929
and were involved in World War II from 1939 to 1945. Getúlio Vargas based his
administration on the precepts of populism, nationalism, and laborism. Economic policy
began to prioritize the domestic market, which favored industrial growth and,
consequently, the process of urbanization.
The centralism of the Vargas government era paved the way for the complete unification
of the Brazilian domestic market, which was all the more important given that industrial
activity became the driving force of the economy. It was thanks to this centralizing drive
that Brazil definitively endowed itself with an integrated domestic market capable of self-
generating growth. Until 1930, industry's share of the Brazilian economy was negligible.
The economic crisis of 1929 and the 1930 Revolution created the conditions for the
beginning of Brazil's break with its colonial past, the takeoff of the country's
industrialization process, and the overcoming of its dependence on foreign capital and the
export market. The political forces that assumed power in Brazil in 1930 supported and
implemented an industrialization project aimed at lifting the country out of its economic
backwardness and propelling it toward progress with the establishment of its own
industrial park, modeled on those of European nations and the United States. It was the
first time in Brazil's history that a government made such a decision.
In 1930, the ideology of nationalism became victorious: autonomous development with a
strong industrial base. Industrialization developed through the process of import
substitution, that is, producing in Brazil what was previously imported from abroad. The
only external interference from 1930 to 1945 occurred during World War II, when the
United States government pressured the Vargas administration to establish US military
bases in Natal and Fernando de Noronha. This only occurred because President Vargas
demanded that, in return, the US government implement the Volta Redonda steel mill,
which was fundamental to the development of basic industry in Brazil. After World War
II, on October 29, 1945, under pressure from the United States government, military
personnel invaded the Catete Palace in Rio de Janeiro and forced President Vargas's
resignation.
Getúlio Vargas returned to power after being elected president of the Republic in 1950.
Between 1951 and 1953, he implemented a series of infrastructure projects, including the
modernization of railways, ports, coastal shipping, and electricity generation. Measures
were adopted to overcome regional income disparities, that is, to better integrate the
Northeast with the rest of the national economy and achieve monetary stability. The
BNDES (National Development Bank) and Petrobras were also created. The national
developmentalist policy adopted by Getúlio Vargas violated the interests of Brazil's ruling
classes, associated with US imperialism. The attack, which resulted in the death of Air
Force Major Rubens Vaz and injured journalist and political opponent Carlos Lacerda,
commanded by the head of Getúlio Vargas's personal guard, Gregório Fortunato,
triggered a political crisis that culminated in Getúlio Vargas's suicide on August 24, 1954.
Refusing to accept his deposition by the military in 1954, President Vargas committed
suicide, whose action also representing the final act of the first Brazilian ruler to base his
actions on defending national sovereignty.
capitalist powers, was undertaken by President Getúlio Vargas. He came to power with
the so-called 1930 revolution that ended the "Old Republic," which existed from 1889 to
1930. His government adopted a nationalist policy from 1930 to 1945. From 1930 to
1945, there was no external interference in Brazil's development by the major powers
because they were all committed to overcoming the global economic depression of 1929
and were involved in World War II from 1939 to 1945. Getúlio Vargas based his
administration on the precepts of populism, nationalism, and laborism. Economic policy
began to prioritize the domestic market, which favored industrial growth and,
consequently, the process of urbanization.
The centralism of the Vargas government era paved the way for the complete unification
of the Brazilian domestic market, which was all the more important given that industrial
activity became the driving force of the economy. It was thanks to this centralizing drive
that Brazil definitively endowed itself with an integrated domestic market capable of self-
generating growth. Until 1930, industry's share of the Brazilian economy was negligible.
The economic crisis of 1929 and the 1930 Revolution created the conditions for the
beginning of Brazil's break with its colonial past, the takeoff of the country's
industrialization process, and the overcoming of its dependence on foreign capital and the
export market. The political forces that assumed power in Brazil in 1930 supported and
implemented an industrialization project aimed at lifting the country out of its economic
backwardness and propelling it toward progress with the establishment of its own
industrial park, modeled on those of European nations and the United States. It was the
first time in Brazil's history that a government made such a decision.
In 1930, the ideology of nationalism became victorious: autonomous development with a
strong industrial base. Industrialization developed through the process of import
substitution, that is, producing in Brazil what was previously imported from abroad. The
only external interference from 1930 to 1945 occurred during World War II, when the
United States government pressured the Vargas administration to establish US military
bases in Natal and Fernando de Noronha. This only occurred because President Vargas
demanded that, in return, the US government implement the Volta Redonda steel mill,
which was fundamental to the development of basic industry in Brazil. After World War
II, on October 29, 1945, under pressure from the United States government, military
personnel invaded the Catete Palace in Rio de Janeiro and forced President Vargas's
resignation.
Getúlio Vargas returned to power after being elected president of the Republic in 1950.
Between 1951 and 1953, he implemented a series of infrastructure projects, including the
modernization of railways, ports, coastal shipping, and electricity generation. Measures
were adopted to overcome regional income disparities, that is, to better integrate the
Northeast with the rest of the national economy and achieve monetary stability. The
BNDES (National Development Bank) and Petrobras were also created. The national
developmentalist policy adopted by Getúlio Vargas violated the interests of Brazil's ruling
classes, associated with US imperialism. The attack, which resulted in the death of Air
Force Major Rubens Vaz and injured journalist and political opponent Carlos Lacerda,
commanded by the head of Getúlio Vargas's personal guard, Gregório Fortunato,
triggered a political crisis that culminated in Getúlio Vargas's suicide on August 24, 1954.
Refusing to accept his deposition by the military in 1954, President Vargas committed
suicide, whose action also representing the final act of the first Brazilian ruler to base his
actions on defending national sovereignty.
3
The second attempt to promote national emancipation through Brazil's economic
development, independent of the global market and subordinated to international capital
and major capitalist powers, was undertaken by President João Goulart, a disciple of
Getúlio Vargas. In 1961, he sought to implement the same populist and nationalist policy
by implementing the so-called Basic Reforms, which combined initiatives aimed at
banking, fiscal, urban, administrative, agrarian, and university reforms. These initiatives
also included granting voting rights to illiterates and to junior officers in the Armed
Forces. President João Goulart's measures also sought greater state participation in
economic matters, regulating foreign investment in Brazil. Among the changes
envisioned by the Basic Reforms was, first and foremost, agrarian reform. The goal was
to enable thousands of rural workers to access land held by large estates. The new profit
remittance law sought to reduce the extremely high rate of profits that large foreign
companies remitted from Brazil to their headquarters.
For adopting a populist and nationalist policy, João Goulart was deposed from power in
1964. The 1964 coup d'état that overthrew João Goulart's government was a
counterrevolution promoted by Brazil's ruling classes with the support of the United
States government. It was a conservative reaction to the possibility of an effective and
radical transformation of Brazil and national emancipation during João Goulart's
administration. The rulers who succeeded Getúlio Vargas and João Goulart adopted
policies that increased their political, economic, and technological dependence on
international capital. The Eurico Dutra government (1946-1950), which succeeded
Getúlio Vargas in 1946, made Brazil subordinate to the United States, whose alliance
with the US government resulted in authoritarian political actions at home. The Juscelino
Kubitschek administration (1955–1960), which succeeded the Vargas administration
after 1954, contributed to the denationalization of the national economy when foreign
capital took over Brazil's industrialization process, leaving domestic industry to fend for
itself as it faced competition from foreign groups.
The Brazilian company that led Brazil's industrialization process during the Vargas
administration was dismantled by foreign capital, which gradually took control of the
most dynamic sectors of the Brazilian economy. The military rulers who took power in a
1964 coup d'état, succeeding the government of João Goulart, established a dictatorship
that lasted 21 years (1964 to 1985). They not only dismantled the country's existing
democratic institutions, but also annulled the mandates of opposition parliamentarians,
tortured, and killed hundreds of democrats and left-wing activists. They maintained the
Juscelino Kubitschek administration's economic policy of subordinating the Brazilian
economy to international capital. The capitalist development model dependent on
technology and foreign capital inaugurated by the Juscelino Kubitschek administration in
1955, which reached its peak in the 1970s during the military regime, ran out of steam in
the early 1980s.
The 1980s and 1990s marked Brazil's longest and most severe crisis in its history. Internal
and external factors contributed to changes in Brazil's existing institutional framework.
Internally, the state's financial crisis, which rendered it incapable of acting as an investor,
the insufficiency of domestic private savings, the cessation of financing from
international banks, and the reduction of foreign direct investment in Brazil following the
external debt crisis of the 1980s challenged the capitalist development model, financially
and technologically dependent on foreign sources, that had been in force until then. This
unfortunate situation became even more serious after 1990, when the neoliberal model of
subordinating the country to globalized capitalism was adopted.
The second attempt to promote national emancipation through Brazil's economic
development, independent of the global market and subordinated to international capital
and major capitalist powers, was undertaken by President João Goulart, a disciple of
Getúlio Vargas. In 1961, he sought to implement the same populist and nationalist policy
by implementing the so-called Basic Reforms, which combined initiatives aimed at
banking, fiscal, urban, administrative, agrarian, and university reforms. These initiatives
also included granting voting rights to illiterates and to junior officers in the Armed
Forces. President João Goulart's measures also sought greater state participation in
economic matters, regulating foreign investment in Brazil. Among the changes
envisioned by the Basic Reforms was, first and foremost, agrarian reform. The goal was
to enable thousands of rural workers to access land held by large estates. The new profit
remittance law sought to reduce the extremely high rate of profits that large foreign
companies remitted from Brazil to their headquarters.
For adopting a populist and nationalist policy, João Goulart was deposed from power in
1964. The 1964 coup d'état that overthrew João Goulart's government was a
counterrevolution promoted by Brazil's ruling classes with the support of the United
States government. It was a conservative reaction to the possibility of an effective and
radical transformation of Brazil and national emancipation during João Goulart's
administration. The rulers who succeeded Getúlio Vargas and João Goulart adopted
policies that increased their political, economic, and technological dependence on
international capital. The Eurico Dutra government (1946-1950), which succeeded
Getúlio Vargas in 1946, made Brazil subordinate to the United States, whose alliance
with the US government resulted in authoritarian political actions at home. The Juscelino
Kubitschek administration (1955–1960), which succeeded the Vargas administration
after 1954, contributed to the denationalization of the national economy when foreign
capital took over Brazil's industrialization process, leaving domestic industry to fend for
itself as it faced competition from foreign groups.
The Brazilian company that led Brazil's industrialization process during the Vargas
administration was dismantled by foreign capital, which gradually took control of the
most dynamic sectors of the Brazilian economy. The military rulers who took power in a
1964 coup d'état, succeeding the government of João Goulart, established a dictatorship
that lasted 21 years (1964 to 1985). They not only dismantled the country's existing
democratic institutions, but also annulled the mandates of opposition parliamentarians,
tortured, and killed hundreds of democrats and left-wing activists. They maintained the
Juscelino Kubitschek administration's economic policy of subordinating the Brazilian
economy to international capital. The capitalist development model dependent on
technology and foreign capital inaugurated by the Juscelino Kubitschek administration in
1955, which reached its peak in the 1970s during the military regime, ran out of steam in
the early 1980s.
The 1980s and 1990s marked Brazil's longest and most severe crisis in its history. Internal
and external factors contributed to changes in Brazil's existing institutional framework.
Internally, the state's financial crisis, which rendered it incapable of acting as an investor,
the insufficiency of domestic private savings, the cessation of financing from
international banks, and the reduction of foreign direct investment in Brazil following the
external debt crisis of the 1980s challenged the capitalist development model, financially
and technologically dependent on foreign sources, that had been in force until then. This
unfortunate situation became even more serious after 1990, when the neoliberal model of
subordinating the country to globalized capitalism was adopted.
4
The neoliberal economic model imposed by globalized capitalism began its
implementation in Brazil during the Fernando Collor administration in 1990, when the
process of dismantling the existing institutional apparatus resulting from the national
developmentalist model of the Vargas era and the dependent capitalist development
model of the Kubitschek administration and the military regime in Brazil, characterized
by active government participation in driving the development process, began. With the
neoliberal model, the Brazilian government abdicated this role, transferring it to market
forces driven by globalized capitalism. The neoliberal economic model seeks to promote
economic development supported exclusively by domestic and foreign private
investment, including in infrastructure, which has always been an area reserved for
government investment.
Adopting the neoliberal adjustment strategy formulated by the Washington Consensus,
the Itamar Franco administration, which replaced Fernando Collor, and the Fernando
Henrique Cardoso (FHC) administration, which replaced Itamar Franco, began to
implement its three stages, described below: 1) stabilizing the economy (combating
inflation); 2) implementing structural reforms (privatizations, market deregulation,
financial and trade liberalization); and 3) resuming foreign investment to boost
development. The Itamar Franco and FHC administrations pursued the fight against
inflation with the Plano Real, privatized state-owned companies, and further opened the
national economy to international capital. The Lula administration, from 2002 to 2010,
maintained the same economic policy as its predecessor, FHC, except for the privatization
policy, enhanced by social policies aimed at serving the poorest segments of the
population. The Dilma Rousseff administration continued the Lula administration's
economic and social policies, resuming the privatization policy, which was called a
public-private partnership.
The Michel Temer administration, which replaced Dilma Rousseff, and the Jair
Bolsonaro administration, which replaced Michel Temer, increased Brazil's economic
dependence on foreign countries with their policies of privatizing state-owned companies
and further aggravated the country's economic and social situation by adopting measures
that deepened the economic recession and made it impossible to resume Brazil's
development, resulting in negative economic growth, external imbalances,
deindustrialization of the country, stagnation in productivity, widespread business
bankruptcy, mass unemployment, high domestic debt, a fiscal crisis in the federal, state,
and municipal governments, and also a setback in social achievements with the adoption
of labor and pension reforms. The fact is that, starting in 1990, when the neoliberal model
of subordinating the country to globalized capitalism was adopted, Brazil's economic
dependence on foreign countries increased during the administrations of Fernando Collor,
Itamar Franco, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Lula, Dilma Rousseff, and Michel Temer,
and deepened even further under the Jair Bolsonaro administration, which took power in
2019.
The Jair Bolsonaro administration further radicalized its adoption of the neoliberal
economic model, which led the country to greater subordination to globalized capitalism
and, particularly, to US imperialism. The Bolsonaro administration, in addition to
threatening the dismantling of democratic institutions with its unsuccessful coup attempt,
worsening the population's social conditions, jeopardizing public health with its inaction
in combating the novel coronavirus pandemic, and increasing environmental degradation,
has also compromised national sovereignty through Brazil's subordinate alignment with
US interests and globalized capitalism.The Lula government, which succeeded the
disastrous Bolsonaro government in 2023, took over a Brazilian economy ruined by the
The neoliberal economic model imposed by globalized capitalism began its
implementation in Brazil during the Fernando Collor administration in 1990, when the
process of dismantling the existing institutional apparatus resulting from the national
developmentalist model of the Vargas era and the dependent capitalist development
model of the Kubitschek administration and the military regime in Brazil, characterized
by active government participation in driving the development process, began. With the
neoliberal model, the Brazilian government abdicated this role, transferring it to market
forces driven by globalized capitalism. The neoliberal economic model seeks to promote
economic development supported exclusively by domestic and foreign private
investment, including in infrastructure, which has always been an area reserved for
government investment.
Adopting the neoliberal adjustment strategy formulated by the Washington Consensus,
the Itamar Franco administration, which replaced Fernando Collor, and the Fernando
Henrique Cardoso (FHC) administration, which replaced Itamar Franco, began to
implement its three stages, described below: 1) stabilizing the economy (combating
inflation); 2) implementing structural reforms (privatizations, market deregulation,
financial and trade liberalization); and 3) resuming foreign investment to boost
development. The Itamar Franco and FHC administrations pursued the fight against
inflation with the Plano Real, privatized state-owned companies, and further opened the
national economy to international capital. The Lula administration, from 2002 to 2010,
maintained the same economic policy as its predecessor, FHC, except for the privatization
policy, enhanced by social policies aimed at serving the poorest segments of the
population. The Dilma Rousseff administration continued the Lula administration's
economic and social policies, resuming the privatization policy, which was called a
public-private partnership.
The Michel Temer administration, which replaced Dilma Rousseff, and the Jair
Bolsonaro administration, which replaced Michel Temer, increased Brazil's economic
dependence on foreign countries with their policies of privatizing state-owned companies
and further aggravated the country's economic and social situation by adopting measures
that deepened the economic recession and made it impossible to resume Brazil's
development, resulting in negative economic growth, external imbalances,
deindustrialization of the country, stagnation in productivity, widespread business
bankruptcy, mass unemployment, high domestic debt, a fiscal crisis in the federal, state,
and municipal governments, and also a setback in social achievements with the adoption
of labor and pension reforms. The fact is that, starting in 1990, when the neoliberal model
of subordinating the country to globalized capitalism was adopted, Brazil's economic
dependence on foreign countries increased during the administrations of Fernando Collor,
Itamar Franco, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Lula, Dilma Rousseff, and Michel Temer,
and deepened even further under the Jair Bolsonaro administration, which took power in
2019.
The Jair Bolsonaro administration further radicalized its adoption of the neoliberal
economic model, which led the country to greater subordination to globalized capitalism
and, particularly, to US imperialism. The Bolsonaro administration, in addition to
threatening the dismantling of democratic institutions with its unsuccessful coup attempt,
worsening the population's social conditions, jeopardizing public health with its inaction
in combating the novel coronavirus pandemic, and increasing environmental degradation,
has also compromised national sovereignty through Brazil's subordinate alignment with
US interests and globalized capitalism.The Lula government, which succeeded the
disastrous Bolsonaro government in 2023, took over a Brazilian economy ruined by the
5
abuses promoted by the Temer and Bolsonaro administrations, with the national economy
extremely dependent on foreign capital, foreign technology, export markets, and imports
from various countries.
The current dependence on foreign capital means that the most dynamic sectors of the
Brazilian economy are in the hands of foreign companies. This degree of economic
dependence is increasing and is reflected in several dimensions, such as technology, the
payment of royalties for the use of patents, and intellectual property rights. Brazil spends
billions of reais annually on foreign technologies, especially from US companies,
revealing a significant technological dependence. The adoption of the neoliberal model
in Brazil has deepened the country's technological dependence, which has occurred most
drastically in sectors related to information technology, such as artificial intelligence, big
data, microchips, and next-generation communication networks, such as 5G, which
peripheral countries like Brazil cannot replicate except through purchases and payments
to foreign companies. The Trump administration's tariff hike highlights the significant
vulnerability of Brazil's export sector, a fact that highlights the need for the Brazilian
government to prevent the country's production system from remaining highly dependent
on foreign export markets and prioritize the domestic market. Import spending has grown
in Brazil due to the inability of domestic industry to supply the domestic market and the
presence of multinational companies, which creates dependence on imports of inputs and
products, patent payments for the use of technology, and, therefore, the transfer of the
economic surplus generated by technology purchases and financial loans to the
metropolis.
The current economic problems faced by Brazil, resulting from its dependence on foreign
capital, foreign technology, export markets, and imports from various countries,
exacerbated by the Trump administration's tariff hike from the United States, require the
Lula administration to adopt economic policies that contribute to strengthening the
national economy, reducing current external economic dependence, and ensuring Brazil's
independence. These policies are described below:
1. Make efforts to increase the level of government and private sector savings in Brazil
to increase domestic investment, aiming to avoid or minimize dependence on foreign
capital for investment.
2. Promote coordination between the federal government and Brazil's productive sectors
with a view to greater development for the internal market.
3. Promote the strengthening of national industry by offering financing and granting tax
incentives.
4. Develop the national capital goods industry to make it permanently competitive in the
international market.
5. Modernize Brazilian industry by integrating it into Industry 4.0, encouraging
significant investments and intensive training of managers, engineers, systems analysts,
and technicians in new technologies, in addition to partnerships and strategic alliances
with entities in other partner countries.
6. Make massive investments in education to qualify human resources with a focus on
technology.
7. Reduce and eliminate Brazil's technological dependence by investing heavily in
research and development, education, and innovation in strategic sectors.
abuses promoted by the Temer and Bolsonaro administrations, with the national economy
extremely dependent on foreign capital, foreign technology, export markets, and imports
from various countries.
The current dependence on foreign capital means that the most dynamic sectors of the
Brazilian economy are in the hands of foreign companies. This degree of economic
dependence is increasing and is reflected in several dimensions, such as technology, the
payment of royalties for the use of patents, and intellectual property rights. Brazil spends
billions of reais annually on foreign technologies, especially from US companies,
revealing a significant technological dependence. The adoption of the neoliberal model
in Brazil has deepened the country's technological dependence, which has occurred most
drastically in sectors related to information technology, such as artificial intelligence, big
data, microchips, and next-generation communication networks, such as 5G, which
peripheral countries like Brazil cannot replicate except through purchases and payments
to foreign companies. The Trump administration's tariff hike highlights the significant
vulnerability of Brazil's export sector, a fact that highlights the need for the Brazilian
government to prevent the country's production system from remaining highly dependent
on foreign export markets and prioritize the domestic market. Import spending has grown
in Brazil due to the inability of domestic industry to supply the domestic market and the
presence of multinational companies, which creates dependence on imports of inputs and
products, patent payments for the use of technology, and, therefore, the transfer of the
economic surplus generated by technology purchases and financial loans to the
metropolis.
The current economic problems faced by Brazil, resulting from its dependence on foreign
capital, foreign technology, export markets, and imports from various countries,
exacerbated by the Trump administration's tariff hike from the United States, require the
Lula administration to adopt economic policies that contribute to strengthening the
national economy, reducing current external economic dependence, and ensuring Brazil's
independence. These policies are described below:
1. Make efforts to increase the level of government and private sector savings in Brazil
to increase domestic investment, aiming to avoid or minimize dependence on foreign
capital for investment.
2. Promote coordination between the federal government and Brazil's productive sectors
with a view to greater development for the internal market.
3. Promote the strengthening of national industry by offering financing and granting tax
incentives.
4. Develop the national capital goods industry to make it permanently competitive in the
international market.
5. Modernize Brazilian industry by integrating it into Industry 4.0, encouraging
significant investments and intensive training of managers, engineers, systems analysts,
and technicians in new technologies, in addition to partnerships and strategic alliances
with entities in other partner countries.
6. Make massive investments in education to qualify human resources with a focus on
technology.
7. Reduce and eliminate Brazil's technological dependence by investing heavily in
research and development, education, and innovation in strategic sectors.
6
8. Invest in Brazil's own infrastructure to strengthen research and development of
domestic technological solutions.
9. Develop public policies that encourage innovation and technological production within
the country and strengthen Brazilian universities and research centers.
10. Strengthen national industry, promote local businesses, and foster collaboration
between universities, businesses, and governments to build a more solid and autonomous
technological base.
11. Prevent the country's production system from remaining highly dependent on foreign
export markets to prevent Brazil from being harmed again by decisions made by
governments of countries with which Brazil maintains trade relations.
12. Seek new markets for Brazil's exportable products to compensate for the loss of the
US market due to the Trump administration's tariff hikes.
13. Develop Brazil's production system to primarily serve the domestic market and
become less dependent on the export market.
14. Reduce import spending by adopting an import substitution policy, encouraging the
establishment of industries that replace imports of inputs and products with financing and
tax incentives to ensure national self-sufficiency.
15. Promote the selective opening of the Brazilian economy to protect domestic industry
from predatory competition from imported inputs and products.
The time has come for Brazil to achieve true independence. This depends on the actions
of the Lula administration, future Brazilian governments, and also on the nation's vital
forces that must mobilize in this direction. Enough of centuries-old external dependence.
* Fernando Alcoforado, 85, condecorado com a Medalha do Mérito da Engenharia do Sistema
CONFEA/CREA, membro da SBPC- Sociedade Brasileira para o Progresso da Ciência e do IPB- Instituto
Politécnico da Bahia, engenheiro pela Escola Politécnica da UFBA e doutor em Planejamento Territorial e
Desenvolvimento Regional pela Universidade de Barcelona, professor universitário (Engenharia,
Economia e Administração) e consultor nas áreas de planejamento estratégico, planejamento empresarial,
planejamento regional e planejamento de sistemas energéticos, foi Assessor do Vice-Presidente de
Engenharia e Tecnologia da LIGHT S.A. Electric power distribution company do Rio de Janeiro,
Coordenador de Planejamento Estratégico do CEPED- Centro de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento da Bahia,
Subsecretário de Energia do Estado da Bahia, Secretário do Planejamento de Salvador, é autor dos livros
Globalização (Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 1997), De Collor a FHC- O Brasil e a Nova (Des)ordem Mundial
(Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 1998), Um Projeto para o Brasil (Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 2000), Os
condicionantes do desenvolvimento do Estado da Bahia (Tese de doutorado. Universidade de
Barcelona,http://www.tesisenred.net/handle/10803/1944, 2003), Globalização e Desenvolvimento (Editora
Nobel, São Paulo, 2006), Bahia- Desenvolvimento do Século XVI ao Século XX e Objetivos Estratégicos
na Era Contemporânea (EGBA, Salvador, 2008), The Necessary Conditions of the Economic and Social
Development- The Case of the State of Bahia (VDM Verlag Dr. Müller Aktiengesellschaft & Co. KG,
Saarbrücken, Germany, 2010), Aquecimento Global e Catástrofe Planetária (Viena- Editora e Gráfica,
Santa Cruz do Rio Pardo, São Paulo, 2010), Amazônia Sustentável- Para o progresso do Brasil e combate
ao aquecimento global (Viena- Editora e Gráfica, Santa Cruz do Rio Pardo, São Paulo, 2011), Os Fatores
Condicionantes do Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2012), Energia no
Mundo e no Brasil- Energia e Mudança Climática Catastrófica no Século XXI (Editora CRV, Curitiba,
2015), As Grandes Revoluções Científicas, Econômicas e Sociais que Mudaram o Mundo (Editora CRV,
Curitiba, 2016), A Invenção de um novo Brasil (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2017), Esquerda x Direita e a sua
convergência (Associação Baiana de Imprensa, Salvador, 2018, em co-autoria), Como inventar o futuro
para mudar o mundo (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2019), A humanidade ameaçada e as estratégias para sua
sobrevivência (Editora Dialética, São Paulo, 2021), A escalada da ciência e da tecnologia ao longo da
história e sua contribuição ao progresso e à sobrevivência da humanidade (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2022),
de capítulo do livro Flood Handbook (CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida, United States, 2022), How to
8. Invest in Brazil's own infrastructure to strengthen research and development of
domestic technological solutions.
9. Develop public policies that encourage innovation and technological production within
the country and strengthen Brazilian universities and research centers.
10. Strengthen national industry, promote local businesses, and foster collaboration
between universities, businesses, and governments to build a more solid and autonomous
technological base.
11. Prevent the country's production system from remaining highly dependent on foreign
export markets to prevent Brazil from being harmed again by decisions made by
governments of countries with which Brazil maintains trade relations.
12. Seek new markets for Brazil's exportable products to compensate for the loss of the
US market due to the Trump administration's tariff hikes.
13. Develop Brazil's production system to primarily serve the domestic market and
become less dependent on the export market.
14. Reduce import spending by adopting an import substitution policy, encouraging the
establishment of industries that replace imports of inputs and products with financing and
tax incentives to ensure national self-sufficiency.
15. Promote the selective opening of the Brazilian economy to protect domestic industry
from predatory competition from imported inputs and products.
The time has come for Brazil to achieve true independence. This depends on the actions
of the Lula administration, future Brazilian governments, and also on the nation's vital
forces that must mobilize in this direction. Enough of centuries-old external dependence.
* Fernando Alcoforado, 85, condecorado com a Medalha do Mérito da Engenharia do Sistema
CONFEA/CREA, membro da SBPC- Sociedade Brasileira para o Progresso da Ciência e do IPB- Instituto
Politécnico da Bahia, engenheiro pela Escola Politécnica da UFBA e doutor em Planejamento Territorial e
Desenvolvimento Regional pela Universidade de Barcelona, professor universitário (Engenharia,
Economia e Administração) e consultor nas áreas de planejamento estratégico, planejamento empresarial,
planejamento regional e planejamento de sistemas energéticos, foi Assessor do Vice-Presidente de
Engenharia e Tecnologia da LIGHT S.A. Electric power distribution company do Rio de Janeiro,
Coordenador de Planejamento Estratégico do CEPED- Centro de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento da Bahia,
Subsecretário de Energia do Estado da Bahia, Secretário do Planejamento de Salvador, é autor dos livros
Globalização (Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 1997), De Collor a FHC- O Brasil e a Nova (Des)ordem Mundial
(Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 1998), Um Projeto para o Brasil (Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 2000), Os
condicionantes do desenvolvimento do Estado da Bahia (Tese de doutorado. Universidade de
Barcelona,http://www.tesisenred.net/handle/10803/1944, 2003), Globalização e Desenvolvimento (Editora
Nobel, São Paulo, 2006), Bahia- Desenvolvimento do Século XVI ao Século XX e Objetivos Estratégicos
na Era Contemporânea (EGBA, Salvador, 2008), The Necessary Conditions of the Economic and Social
Development- The Case of the State of Bahia (VDM Verlag Dr. Müller Aktiengesellschaft & Co. KG,
Saarbrücken, Germany, 2010), Aquecimento Global e Catástrofe Planetária (Viena- Editora e Gráfica,
Santa Cruz do Rio Pardo, São Paulo, 2010), Amazônia Sustentável- Para o progresso do Brasil e combate
ao aquecimento global (Viena- Editora e Gráfica, Santa Cruz do Rio Pardo, São Paulo, 2011), Os Fatores
Condicionantes do Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2012), Energia no
Mundo e no Brasil- Energia e Mudança Climática Catastrófica no Século XXI (Editora CRV, Curitiba,
2015), As Grandes Revoluções Científicas, Econômicas e Sociais que Mudaram o Mundo (Editora CRV,
Curitiba, 2016), A Invenção de um novo Brasil (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2017), Esquerda x Direita e a sua
convergência (Associação Baiana de Imprensa, Salvador, 2018, em co-autoria), Como inventar o futuro
para mudar o mundo (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2019), A humanidade ameaçada e as estratégias para sua
sobrevivência (Editora Dialética, São Paulo, 2021), A escalada da ciência e da tecnologia ao longo da
história e sua contribuição ao progresso e à sobrevivência da humanidade (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2022),
de capítulo do livro Flood Handbook (CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida, United States, 2022), How to
7
protect human beings from threats to their existence and avoid the extinction of humanity (Generis
Publishing, Europe, Republic of Moldova, Chișinău, 2023), A revolução da educação necessária ao Brasil
na era contemporânea (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2023), Como construir um mundo de paz, progresso e
felicidade para toda a humanidade (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2024) e How to build a world of peace,
progress and happiness for all humanity (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2024).
protect human beings from threats to their existence and avoid the extinction of humanity (Generis
Publishing, Europe, Republic of Moldova, Chișinău, 2023), A revolução da educação necessária ao Brasil
na era contemporânea (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2023), Como construir um mundo de paz, progresso e
felicidade para toda a humanidade (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2024) e How to build a world of peace,
progress and happiness for all humanity (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2024).
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