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Numbers of the week: Sep. 19, 2020

This is Brazil by the Numbers, a weekly digest of the most interesting figures tucked inside the latest news about Brazil. A selection of numbers that help explain what is going on in Brazil. This week: A new, reduced coronavirus emergency salary. Brazil back on the Hunger Map. Coronavirus infections in the Supreme Court? The pandemic’s impact on organ transplant numbers. The return of Copa Libertadores. And coronavirus trends in Brazil.

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BRL 300 emergency salary

The coronavirus emergency salary has been halved to BRL 300 (USD 56), as the government was unable to cope with the original BRL 50-billion monthly price tag. As we explained in our September 17 Daily Briefing, the cuts will instantly reduce the purchasing power of Brazil’s poorest populations by 44 percent. According to recent estimates, the aid program has accounted for 97 percent of the income for the country’s poorest 10 percent.


10.2 million food-insecure Brazilians

New data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics shows that, in 2018, 4.6 percent of households face severe food insecurity. Economists say this number has probably increased during...

Lucas Berti

Lucas Berti covers international affairs — specialized in Latin American politics and markets. He has been published by Opera Mundi, Revista VIP, and The Intercept Brasil, among others.

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