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Irene Vida Gala - Brazilian Ambassador
Irene Vida Gala - Brazilian Ambassador

Brazil, Ghana record US$259.9m trade

Trade between Brazil and Ghana for the first semester of this year stood at US$259.9 million, the Brazilian Ambassador to Ghana, Madam Irene Vida Gala, has announced as her country marks its Independence Day today.

As Brazilians remember September 7, 1822, when a declaration of independence from Portugal was made by Pedro di Alcântara, the son of the Portuguese King, she said Ghana’s exports to Brazil, which were mainly cocoa and its products, during the period was US$147 million. 

The ambassador said Brazil’s exports during the same period to Ghana were valued at US$112.9 million.

She told the Daily Graphic in an exclusive interview at her office in Accra that 90.71 per cent of this amount was manufactured goods.

Madam Gala announced that Ghana’s trade surplus during the period came to US$ 34.2 million.

She expressed happiness that bilateral trade between Brazil and Ghana reached its peak in 2011 at US$446.9 million, recording US$356.6 million in 2012, increasing to US$359.5 million in 2013, while the figure came to US$323.6 million in 2014. 

In 2015, however, the trade totalled US$216.9 million, out of which US$30 million represented cocoa exports from Ghana to Brazil.

Madam Gala again expressed happiness that trade between the two countries continued to grow, adding that Brazil also appreciated that Ghana was a consumer of its products.

She said the trade levels indicated a tendency or relationship that was going to be maintained for a very long time.

Infrastructural works

The ambassador announced that Brazilian presence in the infrastructural works in the country was very visible.

She said Brazilian companies were involved in such projects as the Nima drainage and the affordable housing project in Prampram.

She said her country undertook the runway project and additional facilities at the Tamale International Airport, adding that companies from Brazil were also involved in the Kwame Nkrumah Circle and Kasoa interchange projects.

3 Presidents in one day

The ambassador noted that the occasion was very important, as Brazil went through a historic period just about a week to its Independence Day, when it had three presidents in one day.

She said in the morning of last week Wednesday, the President of the country was Madam Dilma Rouseff, who was impeached by the senate by 1 p.m. of that day.

By 3p.m. the same day, Mr Michel Temer was sworn in as acting President of Brazil, she noted.

Mr Temer had to travel outside the country that same day to attend the G20 Summit in Hangzhou, China, and the Speaker of the Lower House, also known as the Chamber of Deputies, Mr Rodrigo Maia, was sworn in to act in the acting president’s absence.

The ambassador noted that after its re-democratisation, Brazil has had four presidents, out of which two had been impeached.

She said even though the people were sorry about it on one hand, they were comfortable on the other hand, because everything went on smoothly and in accordance with the Constitution.

This emphasises the confidence in the Constitution and the legal provisions, she reiterated, adding that all the institutions played their expected roles.

‘Sete de Setembro’ Touching on the Independence Day itself, she said the day in the Portuguese language was referred to as 'Sete de Setembro’ and was also known as 'Dia da Independência'.

She said the day was also called ‘Dia da Pátria' meaning National Day.

In Accra today, she said the activities would include a very important exhibition.

She said there would be various celebrations in the capital, Brasilia, with military parades, air shows, musical concerts and fireworks in the evening.

Background to Independence Day

In 1815, Prince Regent John VI created the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves, elevating Brazil to the rank of kingdom and increasing its administrative independence.

A political revolution erupted in Portugal in 1820, forcing the royal family to return. 

John VI's heir, Pedro, Prince of Brazil, remained in Brazil and in 1821, the Portuguese Assembly demanded for Brazil to return to its former condition of colony and the return of the heir (prince) to Portugal. 

Pedro, influenced by the Rio de Janeiro Senate (Senado da Câmara), refused to return on January 9, 1822, a date which became known as Dia do Fico (I'll Stay Day).

On September 2, 1822, a new decree with Lisbon's demands arrived in Rio de Janeiro, while Prince Pedro was in São Paulo. 

Princess Maria Leopoldina, acting as Princess Regent, met with the Council of Ministers and decided to send her husband a letter advising him to proclaim Brazil's independence. 

The letter reached Prince Pedro on September 7, 1822, and on that same day, in a famous scene at the shore of the Ipiranga River, Prince Pedro declared the country's independence, ending 322 years of colonial dominance of Portugal over Brazil.

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