Rio Grande do Sul to receive $1.1 bi from BRICS Bank

The New Development Bank (NDB), also known as the BRICS Bank, will allocate $1.115 billion to assistance measures for Rio Grande do Sul state, in South Brazil. The announcement was made on social media Tuesday (May 14) by NDB President Dilma Rousseff. Since the end of April, the state has been hit hard by storms and floods.

On X, Rousseff classified the moment facing the Brazilian state as difficult and painful, and described it as a public calamity. “These have been weeks of great pain and sadness. I spoke with President Lula and [Rio Grande do Sul] Governor Eduardo Leite about how to deal with this dramatic situation and to ascertain how we could provide financial aid.”

“The BRICS Bank has a commitment, and will work to rebuild and restore the state’s infrastructure. We want to help people rebuild their lives. We are going to allocate resources to the state as quickly as possible, adding up to $1.115 billion,” she wrote.

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The amount, Rousseff reported, will be released in collaboration with four Brazilian banks—national development bank BNDES, Banco do Brasil, and the BRDE, a development bank created by Southern states.

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“In partnership with the BNDES, we’re going to release $500 million, with $250 million earmarked for small and medium-sized businesses, $250 million for environmental protection, infrastructure, water, sewage treatment and disaster prevention efforts. In partnership with Banco do Brasil, the NDB will allocate $100 million for agricultural infrastructure, storage projects, and logistics infrastructure. In partnership with BRDE, we will allocate $20 million to urban development, mobility projects, and water resources.”

In the short term, she added, $295 million will be earmarked in a second contract with BRDE, currently in its final stages of approval. “We will allocate the funds to urban and rural development works, basic sanitation, and social infrastructure. A total of $200 million will be available to be financed directly by the NDB, which could include infrastructure works, urban roads, bridges, and highways.”

“The management of these funds is flexible. The allocation of this money can be directed according to the needs of the state,” she went on to declare.

“I’m sure that, through the strength of the people of Rio Grande do Sul, the solidarity of the Brazilian people and the international community, this crisis will be overcome. We must take all measures to ensure it never happens again,” she concluded.

Also on X, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva commented on the move. “An important announcement for Rio Grande do Sul by the president of the BRICS Bank, Dilma Rousseff.”

BRICS Bank

Former Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff was elected president of the NDB in March last year. She replaced Marcos Troyjo, onetime special secretary of the former Ministry of Economy, who held the post since July 2020. Rousseff will preside over the BRICS Bank until July 2025, when Brazil’s term at the helm of the Shanghai-based financial institution ends. Each BRICS country—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—presides over the bank for a rotating 5-year term.