Brazil
Raises Welfare Benefits Amid
Financial Crisis
Rio de Janeiro - The
Brazilian government announced on Friday a
10 percent rise in benefits of Bolsa
Familia, the family stipend program.
The rise, which goes into effect starting
September, is designed to increase the
purchasing power of Brazil's poorer
population amid the international financial
crisis and offset accumulated inflation in
the past 12 months.
The minimum benefit will rise from 62 to 68
reais (33 to 36 U.S. dollars), and the
variable benefit, paid according to the
number of children in the household, will
rise to 22 reais (12 dollars) for each child
and 33 reais (17 dollars) for each teenager.
The measure would benefit 11 million
families.
Bolsa Familia, or Family Allowance, the
government's main welfare program, will cost
an estimated 1.19 billion reais (639 million
dollars) per year. As the rise was not
foreseen by this year's federal budget, the
government will have to request extra credit
to Congress to guarantee the payment of all
benefits.
However, Budget and Management Minister
Paulo Bernardo stressed that the extra money
is necessary due to the increase in the
number of families included in the program.
The Bolsa Familia, set up in 2003, is the
largest cash transfer program in the world.
It provides financial aid to poor families
on condition that their children attend
school and meet some other requirements.
The program is widely regarded as having
contributed much to President Luiz Inacio
Lula da Silva's high approval ratings, which
hit 80 percent earlier this year.
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