Roadmap to unity: Brazil accelerates drive for regional integration

Brazil is stepping up efforts toward integrating South America and the Caribbean through regional logistics projects.

The administration of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has mapped out five routes to improve logistics and trade ties in South America as a bridge to connect with the Caribbean. To that end, it plans to hold meetings with representatives of neighboring Guyana and Suriname on the sidelines of the IDB-IDB Invest annual meeting in the Dominican Republic on March 6-10.

Historically, Brazil's trade focused on Europe and the US, prioritizing routes across the Atlantic Ocean. In recent years, it has seen a big increase in trade with Asia. 

Between 2002 and 2023, its annual exports of goods and services to South American trading partners rose from US$7.4bn to US$40bn, while exports to Asia surged from US$8.8bn to US$139bn.

The planning ministry recently called on the 11 Brazilian states that share an international border to submit a list of priority works to increase integration. A final list of 124 projects linked to South American logistics will form part of the government's PAC program and is expected to include roads, highways, bridges, ports, waterways, airports, railroads and transmission lines.

Late last year, Brazilian development bank BNDES and multilateral institutions, including the IDB, CAF and Fonplata, announced a 50bn-real (US$10bn) financing line to support South American integration projects.

As part of these efforts, Lula and several of his ministers recently attended the 46th Meeting of the Conference of Caricom Heads of Government in Guyana, where Brazil was invited as a special guest.

"One of the priority integration and development routes for my government is the Guyanese Shield, which encompasses parts of Guyana, Suriname and Venezuela. We literally want to pave our way to the Caribbean. We will open up corridors capable of meeting supply demands and strengthening food security in the region," Lula said in a speech during the closing ceremony in Georgetown.

Caricom is one of the oldest international blocs in the developing world. The combined GDP of its 15 members is US$120bn, while its trade with Brazil reached US$2.7bn last year, compared to US$5bn in 2008, according to the Lula administration.

Despite the intentions to increase regional integration, one particular stumbling block could be the growing tensions over a territorial dispute between Venezuela and Guyana, while Argentine President Javier Milei has also emerged as an antagonist of the Brazilian administration.

"From a political perspective, it seems very clear to me that Brazil wants to increase its influence in the region," José Augusto de Castro, president of Brazilian exporters’ association AEB, told BNamericas. 

"Brazil already has a trade surplus with most countries in the region and I don't see much more room for trade growth."

THE PROJECTS 

The integration projects selected as priorities by the Brazilian government are the following:

1. Guianas Island

Guianas Island, which includes Amapá and Roraima states and parts of Amazonas and Pará states in northern Brazil, would be connected with Guyana, French Guiana, Suriname and Venezuela.

2. Manta-Manaus Multimodal

With multimodal sea, waterway, road and air connections, the Manta-Manaus route is seen as an alternative to the Panama Canal as it would provide links between the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of South America.

It comprises the Amazonas, Pará and Amapá states, in addition to neighboring Andean nations Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.

It is also connected to two other routes: Guianas Island to the north via the BR-174 and BR-156 highways, and the Rondon Quadrant route to the south, via the Madeira waterway or as yet unpaved BR-319 highway.

Manaus, the capital of Amazonas state, is an important node on this route, as it is connected via waterways to Bolivia, Colombia, Peru and Venezuela, in addition to having links with Roraima, Pará, Amapá, Rondônia and Acre states.

3. The Rondon Quadrant

The Rondon Quadrant route is formed by roads connecting Acre and Rondônia states and the western part of Mato Grosso state, extending west to Bolivia and Peru.

4. Capricorn Connection

The Capricorn Connection links Mato Grosso do Sul, Paraná and Santa Catarina states via multiple highways, as well as linking Brazil to Paraguay, Argentina and Chile.

5. Porto Alegre-Coquimbo

Connections between Rio Grande do Sul state in Brazil and Argentina and Uruguay are quite old and well-consolidated, enabling links to Coquimbo port on Chile's Pacific coast.

Brazil's key connections to other South American nations are largely established via routes through Rio Grande do Sul state, which are based on complex and dense economic relationships and extensive physical infrastructure.