The Brazilian population has yet to realize the severity of the crisis set to hit the country in the next two years. The government’s emergency aid program helped to cushion the initial blow of the recession caused by the coronavirus pandemic, but the true colors of Brazil’s fiscal problem have yet to become clear to the average citizen. This is the view of political scientist Daniela Campello, a researcher and professor at think-tank Fundação Getúlio Vargas in Rio de Janeiro.
“The government’s [emergency aid program] forged a security blanket that sustained a lot until now”, argues Ms. Campello. But in...