READY FOR A HUGE LEAP FORWARD(MARANHAO POISED TO RECEIVE UNPRECEDENTED VOLUME OF INVESTMENTS).

BRAZILIAN POET BANDEIRA TRIBUZI INTERPRETED THE ANGUISH AND SUFFERING OF HIS FELLOW MARANHÃO STATE   INHABITANTS IN POEMS OF RARE BEAUTY,BUT HE ALSO IDEALIZED HIS HOME STATE AS A  PROGRESSIVE AND INDUSTRIALIZED FOREC IN A NUMBER OF LITTLE KNOWN ECONOMIC ESSAYS.THIS QUASI-UTOPIA ENVISAGED BY THE POET AND ECONOMIST IN THE 1970s MAY NOW FINALLY BE STARTING TO MATERIALIZE,IF ALL THE INVESTMENTS FORECAST FOR THE STATE OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS ARE REALIZED.MORE THAN R$ 100 BILLION IN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE MONEY IS EXPECTED TO BE SPENT ON INDUSTRIAL AND INFRASTRUCTURE  PROJECTS IN MARANHÃO BY 2016,AND THE STATE GOVERNMENT ESTIMATES THAT THIS MOUNTAIN OF MONEY WILL GENERATE 150,000 DIRECT AND INDIRECT JOBS.EXPECTATIONS ARE RUNNING HIGH.THE STATES 6.4 MILLION  INHABITANTS ARE POISED ON THE THRESHOLD OF BREAKING FREE FROM THEIR IDENTIFICATION  WITH POVERTY."WE ARE BEING PRESENTED WITH OPPORTUNITIES NEVER BEFORE SEEN IN THE ECONOMIC HISTORY OF MARANHÃO.AND WE ARE UP TO THE CHALLEGE",SAYS GOVERNOR ROSEANA SARNEY.

MARANHÃO IS A REGION NATURALLY INCLINED TOWARDS GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT.COVERING AN AREA OF 333,000 SQUARE KILOMETERS,IT IS THE SECOND LARGEST STATE IN NORTHEAST BRAZIL AFTER BAHIA.ITS TERRITORY BOASTS A WIDE RANGE OF DIFFERENT GEOGRAPHIC AND CLIMATIC CONDITIONS,FROM RAINFOREST AND ABUNDANT RIVERS,THE TYPICAL DRY NORTHEASTEN CAATINGA SCRUBLAND,FLOOD LANDS AND MANGROVE SWAMPS,TO THE LAGOONS AND DESERT-LIKE CONDITIONS OF THE LENÇOIS MARANHENSES.FURTHERMORE,IT IS LOCATED   IN THE NORTHERN PORTION OF BRAZIL,AT ONE OF THE POINTS IN THE COUNTRY  CLOSEST TO THE AMERICAN AND EUROPEAN MARKETS,AND WITH  EASY ACCESS TO THE PANAMA CANAL,ENABLING QUICK PASSAGE TO ASIAN COUNTRIES.

THE STATE HAS GROWN IN LEAPS AND BOUNDS SINCE THE MID-90s.ACCORDING TO THE BRAZILIAN STATISTICS AND GEOGRAPHY  INSTITUTE(IBGE),MARANHÃO's GDP ADVANCED 60.2% BETWEEN 1995 AND 2007,THE HIGHEST EXPANSION IN THE NORTHEASTERN REGION.THIS YEAR,THE ECONOMY IS EXPECTED TO GROW ANOTHER 10%,ACCORDING TO ESTIMATES FROM THE STATE GOVERNMENT,WITCH ALSO EXPECTS THE GDP TO DOUBLE OVER THE NEXT SEVEN YEARS.NEVERTHELESS,THE STATE IS  STILL  BELEAGUERED BY DIMAL  SOCIAL INDICATORS.INCOME  PER CAPITA IN MARANHÃO IS THE SECOND LOWEST OF ALL BRAZILIAN STATES,AHEAD OF PIAUÍ ALONE.THE POOR PROVISION OF BASIC SANITATION SERVICES ALSO PLACES MARANHÃO AT RISK WITH ONE OF THE HIGHEST INFANT MORTALITY RATES ANYWHERE IN BRAZIL.AND EVEN THOUGH THE  ILLITERACY RATE HAS FALLEN FROM 23% TO 20% OVER THE PAST DECADE,THE RATE STILL STANDS AT DOUBLE THE NATIONAL AVERAGE."WE NEED TO TAKE ADVANTAGE  OF THE ECONOMIC BOOM TO INVEST IN EDUCATION.WE CAN NO LONGER ACCPET A SITUATION WHERE 90% OF THE MUNICIPALITIES HAVE NO NEWSPAPER IN CIRCULATION",SAID HAROLDO CORREA CAVALCANTI JUNIOR,PRESIDENT OF THE MARANHÃO STATE COMMERCIAL ASSOCIATION.

THE GOVERNMENT IS AWARE THAT IT IS BEING PRESENTED WITH A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY IN THE ECONOMIC HISTORY OF MARANHÃO."WE ARE TALKING ABOUT AN INVESTMENT VOLUME THAT REPRESENTS THREE TIMES STATE's CURRENT GDP.THIS IS  EXPECTED  TO HAVE A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON THE STANDARD OF  LIVING OF THE POPULATION,BUT FOR THIS TO MATERIALIZE THE GOVERNMENT HAS TO IMPLEMENT INCLUSIVE POLICIES,BECAUSE WE WILL ONLY MORE FORWARD THROUGH TRAINING,COMPETENCE AND OPPORTUNITIES",SAID INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE SECRETARY MAURICIO MACEDO.

AMONG THE LARGEST INVESTMENTS PROJECTS ,MACEDO EMPHASIZED THE OIL REFINERY BEING BUILT BY PETROBRAS,WHICH WIIL HAVE A CAPACITY TO PROCESS 600,000 BARRELS PER DAY,AND THE PULP  MILL OF SUZANO IN THE MUNICIPALITY OF IMPERATRIZ,WHICH WILL HAVE THE CAPACITY TO PRODUCE1.3 MILLION TONS OF PULP PER YEAR."UNQUESTIONABLY,THE PETROBRAS PROJECT WILL HAVE AN ENOURMOUS  IMPACT ON OUR STATE.WE ARE WORKING CLOSELY WITH LOCAL SUPPLIERS THROUNG  THE MARANHÃO SUPPLIER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM AND WE ARE GOING TO TRAIN THE WORKFORCE THROUGH THE PROGRAM TO MOBILIZE THE NATIONAL  OIL AND NATURAL GAS INDUSTRY(PROMINP),"HE SAID.

THE PLANS OF PULP MANUFACTURER SUZANO IN MARANHÃO ARE ALSO EXPECTED TO HAVE A SIZABLE IMPACT ON THE STATE.IN ADDTION TO BUILDING THE WORLD'S  LARGEST PULP MILL,THE COMPANY WILL ALSO INTRODUCE FOREST CULTIVATION,WHICH IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT FOR THE STATE'S EXPANDING PIG IRON INDUSTRY."WE ALREADY HAVE AN INSTALLED CAPACITY FOR 2 MILLION TONS OF PIG IRON PER YEAR AND WE ARE ALSO GETTING OUR FIRST STELL MILL IN AÇAILANDIA,BUILT BY GUSA NORDESTE WITH  A PRODUCTION CAPACITY OF 500,00 TONS  OF STEEL RODS PER YEAR."