The Brazilian government announced on Wednesday (Dec. 10) that 70.8 percent of the BRL 1.3 trillion allocated to the New Growth Acceleration Program (PAC) for 2023 to 2026 has already been spent. BRL 944.8 billion has been invested through August of this year in various projects and equipment throughout the country.

At a ceremony at the Planalto presidential palace, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said that many people thought it was “humanly impossible” to complete this volume of investment. He urged mayors and governors to move forward with the projects and said that it is the role of the state to mobilize resources for initiatives that reach the periphery and the poorest.

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“Now, this last part is passing the investment ball to mayors and governors, and we hope that our bureaucracy, which will make the investment, will not take too long,” he said, noting that the selection of the projects that received funds was made together with federal entities.

With an estimated BRL 1.7 trillion in public and private investments, the New PAC was launched in August 2023 by President Lula. Of the total amount, BRL 1.3 trillion is expected to be invested by 2026, with the remainder to be disbursed after that date.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva signed a law increasing control over individuals under investigation and convicted of crimes against sexual dignity. The new piece of legislation also reinforces efforts in prevention, accountability, and victim support.

To ensure stricter punishment for these crimes – which mainly affect vulnerable individuals such as children, adolescents, and people with disabilities – the new law increases penalties for sexual crimes involving these groups. The maximum penalty can reach 40 years of imprisonment.

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The law also incorporates into the Brazilian Penal Code the crime of non-compliance with emergency protective measures, punishable by imprisonment of two to five years. The move aims to extend this protection, previously only included in the Maria da Penha Law, which created mechanisms to curb domestic and family violence against women.

Furthermore, the new legislation makes it mandatory to collect biological material from individuals convicted of or under investigation on charges of crimes against sexual dignity, for the purpose of genetic profiling.

Enforcement

The judge can enforce measures right away, including suspending or restricting gun ownership; removing the abuser from the home where they live with the victim; banning the abuser from approaching or contacting the victim, family members, and witnesses; and restricting or suspending visits with under-age dependents.

In addition, the judge may determine the use of an electronic ankle tag and a security device that notifies the victim of the aggressor’s approach.

Custody

How people convicted of sex crimes can change the way they serve a sentence is now based on stricter rules. Only those who pass a criminal exam showing no signs of a repeat offense can serve their sentence under a better regime or leave prison.

The new law also makes electronic monitoring mandatory for those convicted of crimes against sexual dignity and crimes against women when they leave the penal facility.

Children and adolescents

With regard to Brazil’s Statute of the Child and Adolescent – a code known in the country as ECA – the new legislation extends the possibility of medical, psychological, and psychiatric care to the families of victims of sexual crimes.

Educational campaigns are expanded and targeted at new audiences, including schools, health care centers, sports organizations, non-profits, and other public spaces.

The same measures are now included in the Statute of Persons with Disabilities to ensure a more comprehensive support network for victims of crimes against sexual dignity and their families.

On Monday (Nov. 24), Brazil and Mozambique signed nine cooperation agreements to strengthen the latter’s institutional capacity in development, health care, education, diplomacy, entrepreneurship, trade, civil aviation, legal assistance, and agroforestry.

In Maputo, the capital of the African country, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said he intends to restore the capacity of Brazil’s development bank BNDES to finance Brazilian companies abroad, benefiting both Brazil and partner nations like Mozambique.

“Mozambique is a developing country that still has infrastructure gaps to fill. Its growth depends on ports, roads, power plants, and transmission lines. Brazil has dynamic companies capable of making a contribution,” he said in a statement to the press alongside Mozambique’s President Daniel Chapo.

In order to export these services, Lula believes that Brazil must offer credit options to finance the internationalization of the country’s businesses, which has already been done via BNDES.

The Brazilian delegation arrived in Maputo on Sunday (24) from Johannesburg, South Africa, where Lula participated in the G20 Leaders’ Summit.

The trip to Mozambique is part of the celebrations of 50 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries, which are also partners in the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP).

The Ministry of Foreign Relations has also noted that, upon assuming his third term in 2023, the president made it clear that he would resume relations with African countries as a foreign policy priority.

“Brazil has lost its way down dark paths and, in the process, forgotten its ties with Africa. Many of the seeds we had sown did not have time to take root. But it is time to regain our conscience,” Lula declared.

In 2023, he visited South Africa, Angola, and São Tomé and Príncipe. In 2024, he visited Egypt and Ethiopia, as well as receiving the president of Benin on an official visit. In 2025, he welcomed the presidents of Angola and Nigeria. In May this year, Brazil also hosted a meeting of agriculture ministers.

Trade

Mozambique is the largest beneficiary of Brazilian cooperation with resources from the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC) in Africa, covering a wide range of areas – health care, agriculture, education, professional training, among others. Since 2015, 67 initiatives have been formed.

The two countries also plan to expand trade and investment. To this end, a forum was organized with Brazilian and Mozambican executives featuring panels on agribusiness, industry and innovation, and health care. Lula should participate in the closing ceremony of the event on Monday.

Trade between Brazil and Mozambique totaled USD 40.5 million in 2024, with Brazilian exports totaling USD 37.8 million and imports totaling USD 2.7 million.

The products exported consist mainly of fresh, frozen, or chilled poultry meat (41%), perfumery or toilet articles (4.7%), and furniture and parts thereof (5%). Imports consist mainly of ungraded or stemmed tobacco (95%).

The government understands that, despite limited trade flows, Brazil’s commercial and institutional relations with African countries are part of a political project to combine cooperation for the development and education of these nations.

Today, Lula cited, for example, the strengthening of the Brazilian health industrial complex, which will once again enable the production of pharmaceuticals and medicines in Mozambique.

The president also revealed that, in 2026, the Ministry of Education and the Brazilian Cooperation Agency will offer up to 80 places for training courses in agricultural sciences and up to 400 places for technical courses in agriculture to Mozambican employees. The Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) will reinforce this initiative by training technicians from the African country.

“No one is better than Brazil to contribute to food security in Mozambique. With the right technology, we can increase productivity in the African savanna without compromising the environment,” he pointed out.

“With the same sense of priority, we are working to include Mozambique among the countries covered by the accelerated implementation phase of the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty,” he added.

The Brazilian president also mentioned potential partnerships for forest conservation, energy transition, audiovisual and literary production, and efforts to against organized crime.

“The Brazilian government has been working intelligently to dismantle criminal networks and strangle their sources of financing. The Brazilian Federal Police is internationally recognized for its ability to track illicit assets and combat money laundering. It is available to share its experience and expand its collaboration with Mozambique,” Lula added.

In addition to the working meeting with President Daniel Chapo and the meeting with business leaders, Lula will receive an honorary doctorate from the Pedagogical University of Maputo.