Brazil: Is this Nation of Non-Readers the Land of Opportunity?

摘要

After settling in to his second term, Brazil’s president Lula da Silva has pledged to improve on his country’s woefully inadequate education system. This means addressing illiteracy, which is one of Brazil’s most serious development issues. While Brazil has the potential to be one of the world’s largest economies, it is hampered by high rates of functional illiteracy. Furthermore, those that can read are non-readers. Consequently the Brazilian government has pledged to resolve illiteracy and launched a nationwide reading program in 2005 with the optimistic goal of increasing the national reading rate by 50%. The article analyzes the political risk in Brazil in light of the da Silva administration’s stated objectives. It will also assess the impact of state literacy campaigns will have on the publishing industry and the potential for investment in the country. Finally, it will discuss the importance of foreign investors in Brazil’s development goals.