Portugal is no longer seen by Brazilians as Roberto Leal’s country
“27 years ago, when I arrived [ao Brasil]most Brazilians knew little about Portugal and for them Portugal was still the Portugal of Roberto Leal (…) of the ranches, of women with mustaches and beards”, explains Armando Abreu, in an interview with Lusa.
The official considers an idea that there was of Portugal “was a very retrograde idea” and that “today the vision that Brazilians have of Portugal is a completely different vision”.
Armando Abreu highlights the growing evolution of Portugal since joining the European Union and that, on the other hand, in the last “four years there has been a degradation of living conditions” in Brazil and the population aspires to have a better quality of life and “choose Portugal as this superior quality of life and “choose Portugal as that superior quality of life” gateway.
Brazilians are the main resident community in the country, representing in the past 29.8% of the total, the highest figure since 2012.
At the end of last year, 204,694 Brazilians lived in Portugal, and the community from Brazil was also the one that grew the most in 2021 (11.3%) compared to 2020.
“Today, Portugal has become a relatively attractive language for the world, much more for Brazilians, because we know that, whether in terms of business or in terms of day-to-day life, the factor is very important”, adding that the coming of Brazilians to Portugal is also caused by the problems of security and violence in Brazil.
Investments by Brazilians in Portugal, explains the vice-president of the Executive Committee of the Portuguese Chambers of Commerce Network, are focused on real estate, civil construction and agribusiness.
A large share that comes to Portugal belongs to a middle class, liberal professionals, who come “in most cases to look for a better quality of life”.
“This also fits with a reality that the whole of Europe lives, and Portugal is no exception to this, which is a very large labor difficulty, especially in the areas of hotels, civil construction, services, agriculture”, says the situation.
At the end of the past, the Portuguese parliament during a month of entry of new visas for the citizens of the Portuguese Community (CPLP), which allows to in the country with the objective of looking for work six months, lacking only the promulgation of the President of the Republic to come into effect.
“Hunger is added to the desire to eat: Portugal needs manpower and we have a lot of Brazilians willing to start in Portugal”, he highlights.
Brazil will vote on October 2nd in a highly bipolarized elections between the current Brazilian president, Jair Bolsonaro, and the former head of state Lula da Silva.
In the opinion of Armando Abreu, this movement will not diminish “regardless of who wins, Lula is Bolsonaro”
“This flow will continue and increase”, he guarantees.