Tereza Campello, minister for Social Development and Combat against Hunger, affirmed today in a radio program that government wealth transfer programs are not considered costs, but investments.
Our evaluation is that this isn't a cost, it is investment. We have important studies that show, for example, that for each $1.00 that we invest in Bolsa Família, which is distributed among the low-income population, $1.40 returns, multiplying the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
With regard to opposition criticism that money for Bolsa Família is being stolen before reaching its intended recipients, she added that the rate of fraud is "less than half a percent."
Campello also spoke about Brazil's new program, to be called Brasil Sem Miséria ("Brazil Without Misery"), which seeks to eliminate extreme poverty in Brazil, currently affecting more than 16 million people. This program will incorporate the existing Bolsa Família, a new program called Bolsa Verde which will provide financial incentives to rural poor who preserve forested areas, a program of worker training and micro-credit, and the construction of local infrastructure such as water cisterns in remote areas. More than R$20 billion (US$12,5 million) is budgeted annually for the program over the next four years.
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I wanted to post this news item here simply because I find the perspective refreshing and something missing from the distorted discourse Stateside. Investing in the poor - what a concept! And why not? For some reason in the US, throwing endless billions to the billionaires is considered "job creation" while keeping the poor and middle class from suffering is an "expense." Well screw that!! It's investing in the poor. As for the job creators... well, investing in the poor gave Brazil 2.5 million new jobs in 2010 and it's on pace for 3 million more in 2011. Spending all that money on the American wealthly did...what, exactly?