On his first international trip since he became President, Jair Bolsonaro delivered, this Tuesday 22nd January, the keynote speech at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.
Thrusted into the spotlight less than three weeks after his inauguration, Bolsonaro vowed to improve the business environment in Brazil and transform Latin America's largest economy into a more investment-friendly country.
Read the entire speech:
Good afternoon everyone!
Thank you, Professor Schwab!
First of all, thank you for the invitation to participate in this forum and the opportunity to speak to such a distinguished audience.
Thank you also for the honor to address you, gentlemen, at the opening of this plenary session.
This is the first international trip I have taken after my election, proof of the importance I attach to the questions that this forum has promoted and prioritized.
This trip is also a great opportunity for me to show the world the unique moment that my country is living and to present to everyone the new Brazil that we are building.
During the elections, spending less than $1 million and with 8 seconds of television time, being unjustly attacked at all times, we achieved victory.
I took office as Brazil’s President in a profound ethical, moral and economic crisis.
We are committed to changing our history.
For the first time in Brazil, a president set up a team of qualified ministers. Honoring campaign commitments, not accepting political interference and party politics that, in the past, only generated state inefficiency and corruption.
We have the credibility to make the reforms we need and what the world expects of us.
Here among us, my Minister of Justice and Public Security, Sergio Moro, the right man to fight corruption and fight against money laundering.
We will invest heavily in security for you can come to visit with your families, as we are one of the first countries in natural beauty, but we are not among the 40 most visited tourist destinations in the world. Get to know our Amazon rainforest, our beaches, our cities and our Pantanal. Brazil is a paradise, but it is still little-known!
We are the country that most preserves the environment. No other country in the world has as many forests as we do. Agriculture is present in only 9% of our territory and grows thanks to its technology and the competence of rural producers. Less than 20% of our soil is devoted to livestock. These commodities, in large part, guarantee a surplus in our trade balance and feed much of the world.
Our mission now is to go forward with making the preservation of the environment and biodiversity compatible with the necessary economic development, remembering that they are interdependent and inseparable.
The sectors that criticize us have, in fact, much to learn from us.
We want to rule by example and the world reestablishes the trust it has always had in us.
We will reduce the tax burden, simplify the norms, facilitating the lives of those who want to produce, undertake, invest and generate jobs.
We will work for macroeconomic stability, respecting contracts, privatizing and stabilizing public accounts.
Brazil is still an economy relatively closed to international trade, and changing this condition is one of the greatest commitments of this Government.
Be assured that, by the end of my term in office, our economic team, led by Minister Paulo Guedes, will put us in the ranking of the 50 best countries to do business.
Our international relations will be invigorated by Minister Ernesto Araújo, implementing a policy in which ideological bias will no longer exist.
To this end, we will seek to integrate Brazil into the world by incorporating the best international practices, such as those adopted and promoted by the OECD.
We will seek to integrate Brazil into the world also through active advocacy of WTO reform, in order to eliminate unfair trade practices and ensure legal security of international trade.
We will rescue our values and open up our economy.
We will defend the family and true human rights; protect the right to life and to private property, and promote an education system that prepares our youth to the challenges of the fourth industrial revolution, seeking, through knowledge, to reduce poverty and misery.
We are here because we want, in addition to deepening our bonds of friendship, to deepen our commercial relations.
We have the greatest biodiversity in the world and our mineral wealth is abundant. We want partners with technological know-how for this marriage to create progress and development for all.
Our actions, be sure, will attract them to big business, not only for the good of Brazil, but also for that of everyone.
We are with open arms. I want more than a big Brazil, I want a world of peace, freedom and democracy.
With the motto "God above all," I believe our relationships will bring endless progress for all.
Thank you very much. "
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