Defeats and victories in Brazil's war on poverty

摘要

Brazil's widening social safety net seems to be rescuing many of its poorest from the worst of its recent recession. But too many others are still being missed, despite the country's heavy social spending. Not so long ago, President Fernando Henrique Cardoso could point with pride to a steady fall in poverty in Brazil, thanks to the combination of economic growth and low inflation after the launch of a new currency, the real, in 1994. Now the record looks far less glorious: recession and the aftermath of January's devaluation have threatened jobs and living standards. That is testing Brazil's social policy—and the efforts of Mr Cardoso, a left-wing sociologist before he became a social democratic politician, to redirect public spending towards helping the poor.