Brazil, the fifth largest country in the world and the largest in Latin America, has become a great economic power. It has diminished its dependence on external resources and is now a major partner in national and international development efforts. Nationally, Brazil continues to address rural poverty, income inequality, social exclusion, deforestation and forest degradation.

The Amazon is the single largest remaining tropical rainforest and hosts the largest collection of living plant and animal species on Earth - one of every ten species in the world, and one in five of all bird and fish species. It produces 20% of the world’s oxygen and 16% of its freshwater and is home to 30 million people. Its sheer scale - equivalent to the continental U.S. - drives weather patterns, agricultural production, jobs and well-being in the hemisphere.

For more than 50 years, USAID has supported Brazil. Today, USAID works closely with the Brazilian government and civil society to build sustainable socio-economic development solutions as well as promoting private sector engagement towards innovative solutions for biodiversity conservation in the Amazon. With a long-standing, ongoing program for biodiversity conservation in the Brazilian Amazon, USAID/Brazil implements a DOAG, a bilateral agreement with key agencies in the Government of Brazil to support biodiversity conservation and sustainable development activities.

Departing from a traditional donor’s role, USAID/Brazil transitioned from development assistance to a “Strategic Partnerships” mission in 2014 and has been catalyzing transformative and innovative partnerships since then.

Related Links

Partnership for the Conservation of Amazon Biodiversity (PCAB)