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Brazil Facts and Figures from Encarta Go to article
Basic Facts
Official name Federative Republic of Brazil
Capital Brasília
Area 8,547,404 sq km
3,300,171 sq mi
Brazil: Flag and Anthem
Brazil: Flag and Anthem
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People
Population 190,010,650 (2007 estimate)
Population growth
Population growth rate 1.01 percent (2007 estimate)
Projected population in 2025 217,825,222 (2007 estimate)
Projected population in 2050 228,426,737 (2007 estimate)
Population density 23 persons per sq km (2007 estimate)
58 persons per sq mi (2007 estimate)
Urban/rural distribution
Share urban 84 percent (2005 estimate)
Share rural 16 percent (2005 estimate)
Largest cities, with population
São Paulo 10,838,581 (2004 estimate)
Rio de Janeiro 6,051,399 (2004 estimate)
Salvador 2,631,831 (2004 estimate)
Belo Horizonte 2,350,564 (2004 estimate)
Fortaleza 2,332,657 (2004 estimate)
Ethnic groups
Caucasian (includes Portuguese, German, Italian, Spanish, and Polish) 55 percent
Mixed Caucasian and African 38 percent
African 6 percent
Other (including Japanese and Arab) 1 percent
Languages
Portuguese (official), Spanish, English, French
Religious affiliations
Roman Catholic (nominal) 90 percent
Spiritists and African Brazilian religions, such as Candombl, Macumba, and Umbanda 4 percent
Nonreligious 2 percent
Other 4 percent
Health and Education
Life expectancy
Total 72.2 years (2007 estimate)
Female 76.4 years (2007 estimate)
Male 68.3 years (2007 estimate)
Infant mortality rate 28 deaths per 1,000 live births (2007 estimate)
Population per physician 486 people (2004)
Population per hospital bed 370 people (2002)
Literacy rate
Total 87.1 percent (2005 estimate)
Female 87.5 percent (2005 estimate)
Male 86.7 percent (2005 estimate)
Education expenditure as a share of gross national product (GNP) 4 percent (2000-2001)
Number of years of compulsory schooling 8 years (2002-2003)
Number of students per teacher, primary school 24 students per teacher (2002-2003)
Government
Form of government Federal republic
Head of state President
Head of government President
Legislature Bicameral legislature
Chamber of Deputies: 513 deputies
Senate: 81 senators
Voting qualifications
Voluntary for ages 16, 17, over 70, and for illiterate population; compulsory for literate population between ages 18 and 69
Constitution 5 October 1988
Highest court Supreme Federal Tribunal
Armed forces Army, Navy, Air Force
Total number of military personnel 302,909 (2004)
Military expenditures as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) 1.8 percent (2003)
First-level political divisions 26 states and 1 federal district
Economy
Gross domestic product (GDP, in U.S.$) $796.1 billion (2005)
GDP per capita (U.S.$) $4,270.60 (2005)
GDP by economic sector
Agriculture, forestry, fishing 8.1 percent (2005)
Industry 38.4 percent (2005)
Services 53.5 percent (2005)
Employment
Number of workers 91,313,049 (2005)
Workforce share of economic sector
Agriculture, forestry, fishing 20 percent (2002)
Industry 22 percent (2002)
Services 58 percent (2002)
Unemployment rate 9.7 percent (2003)
National budget (U.S.$)
Total revenue $190,891 million (1998)
Total expenditure $206,447 million (1998)
Monetary unit
1 real (R$), consisting of 100 centavos
Agriculture
Soybeans, coffee, tobacco, sugarcane, cacao beans, beef and poultry
Mining
Iron ore, tin, gold, oil, phosphates, platinum, bauxite, uranium, manganese, copper, coal
Manufacturing
Machinery and transportation equipment, food products, textiles and clothing, chemicals
Major exports
Road vehicles and parts, coffee and coffee substitutes, metals, feeding-stuff for animals
Major imports
Petroleum, road vehicles and parts, electrical machinery, organic chemicals, industrial machinery and parts
Major trade partners for exports
United States, Netherlands, Germany, China, Mexico
Major trade partners for imports
United States, Argentina, Germany, Japan, Italy
Energy, Communications, and Transportation
Electricity production
Electricity from thermal sources 7.42 percent (2003 estimate)
Electricity from hydroelectric sources 84.32 percent (2003 estimate)
Electricity from nuclear sources 3.73 percent (2003 estimate)
Electricity from geothermal, solar, and wind sources 4.52 percent (2003 estimate)
Number of radios per 1,000 people 434 (1997)
Number of telephones per 1,000 people 230 (2004)
Number of televisions per 1,000 people 343 (2000 estimate)
Number of Internet hosts per 10,000 people 180 (2003)
Daily newspaper circulation per 1,000 people 43 (1998)
Number of motor vehicles per 1,000 people 170 (2000)
Paved road as a share of total roads 6 percent (2000)
Sources
Basic Facts and People sections
Area data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Population, population growth rate, and population projections are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International Data Base (IDB) (www.census.gov). Urban and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT database (www.fao.org). Largest cities population data and political divisions data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Ethnic divisions and religion data are largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook and from various country censuses and reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue, Languages of the World, Summer Institute of Linguistics International (www.sil.org).
Health and Education section
Life expectancy and infant mortality data are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International database (IDB) (www.census.gov). Population per physician and population per hospital bed data are from the World Health Organization (WHO) (www.who.int). Education data are from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org).
Government section
Government, independence, legislature, constitution, highest court, and voting qualifications data are largely from various government Web sites, the latest Europa World Yearbook, and the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook. The armed forces data is from Military Balance.
Economy section
Gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, GDP by economic sectors, employment, and national budget data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, exports, imports, and major trade partner information is from the statistical bureaus of individual countries, latest Europa World Yearbook, and various United Nations and International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications.
Energy, Communication, and Transportation section
Electricity information is from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) database (www.eia.doe.gov). Radio, telephone, television, and newspaper information is from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). Internet hosts, motor vehicles, and road data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org).
Note
Figures may not total 100 percent due to rounding.
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