Canada-Brazil relations
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Bilateral relations
Canada and Brazil enjoy relations dating back to 1866, when Canada opened its first trade mission in the country. Diplomatic relations were established in 1941, when Brazil opened its Embassy in Ottawa and Canada followed by opening an Embassy in Rio de Janeiro 1944. Both nations also fought side by side in WWII during the Italian campaign. Today, Canada has an embassy in Brasilia, consulates general in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, trade offices in Belo Horizonte, Recife and Porto Alegre, and an honorary consul in Belo Horizonte. Brazil has an embassy in Ottawa and consulates general in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver.
Canada and Brazil enjoy a multifaceted relationship advanced through bilateral mechanisms anchored by a Foreign Minister-led . The fourth edition of the Dialogue was held in 2023 in Brasilia, and focused on key areas of collaboration, including ensuring peace and security, protecting the environment, promoting democracy, safeguarding human and Indigenous rights, and strengthening and reforming the rules-based international order.
High-level government-to-government mechanisms that support Canada and Brazil’s commercial relationship include a Joint Economic Trade Council, a Consultative Committee on Agriculture, and a Joint Committee on Science, Technology and Innovation. Mechanisms for additional bilateral discussions with Brazil include Political-Military Talks and Parliamentary “Friendship Groups” that exist in Brazil’s Congress and Canada’s Parliament.
The strong security and defence links between Canada and Brazil have been established through cooperation on United Nations peacekeeping and promoting the women, peace and security agenda. Given Brazil’s importance as a regional player, and an increased role in regional peace support operations, Brazil is a key partner in the hemisphere for the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces. In June 2023, Canada and Brazil signed a Defence Cooperation Agreement.
Environmental protection and climate action
Canada and Brazil are committed to environmental sustainability and green growth. Our countries collaborate in multilateral fora, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC), Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and the Global Environment Facility (GEF). Canada currently contributes to climate finance initiatives in Brazil through multilateral institutions, notably the Inter-American Development Bank Group (IDB).
Brazil is a member of the International Model Forest Network, developed by Canada in the 1990s and headquartered at Natural Resources Canada. The Network aims to move away from valuing forests for timber alone, considering the social, environmental, economic, and cultural benefits. There are 60 model forests across 30 countries including 6 sites in Brazil, totaling over 12 million hectares of land.
Canada and Brazil also support one another in responding to the impacts of climate change. On July 21, 2023, Brazil sent 105 firefighters and overhead personnel to support Canada in fighting wildfires in British Columbia. In response to extreme flooding in the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul in April-May 2024, Canada allocated $300,000 to disaster relief and humanitarian assistance efforts to support impacted communities.
Democracy and human rights
Canada and Brazil share a commitment to democracy and human rights protection. In September 2023, Brazil joined international efforts to combat disinformation and safeguard the information eco-system, endorsing the Canada-led initiative on the Global Declaration on Information Integrity launched during the United Nations General Assembly high level week.
Canada and Brazil maintain a sustained dialogue on human rights issues. Canada also continues to advance and promote human rights in Brazil, including through local initiatives advancing the rights and empowerment of women and girls, 2SLGBTQ+, Indigenous Peoples, and migrants.
In October 2023, Brazil joined Canada as a member of the Equal Rights Coalition (ERC) which seeks to advance 2SLGBTQI+ rights globally, and in December 2023, on a forthcoming Partnership on Racial Equity and Inclusion.
Mobility
Canada and Brazil have longstanding people-to-people ties. With over 145,000 Brazilians visiting Canada in 2023, Brazil is the ninth largest source of visitors to Canada. Approximately 71,755 individuals in Canada reported having Brazilian origins and, in 2021, 48,455 immigrants in Canada were born in Brazil. Brazil is also Canada’s primary source of student enrollment from South America and Brazil is the largest beneficiary of Canada’s Emerging Leaders in the Americas Program in Latin America. In 2023, 15,615 Brazilian students were in Canada with study permits.
Trade relations
Canada’s trade and investment relationship with Brazil has seen steady growth in recent years. Major two-way foreign investment flows continue to expand as does the bilateral trade of goods and services.
Brazil is Canada’s third largest trading partner in the Americas after the U.S. and Mexico. Merchandise trade between Canada and Brazil totalled $13.3 billion in 2023, an increase of almost 6% from the previous year. Top Canadian merchandise exports to Brazil include:
- fertilizers (62.1%)
- machinery and parts (11.4%)
- mineral fuels, oils, waxes and bituminous substances (4.1%)
- electrical and electronic machinery and parts (2.0%)
Canada's main merchandise imports from Brazil include:
- precious stones and metals (24.2%)
- inorganic chemicals (19.0%)
- aircraft and spacecraft parts (10.9%)
- sugar and sugar products (9.5%)
- machinery (5.9%)
Two-way trade in services in 2023 was nearly $1.7 billion, with services exports of $1.1 billion and imports of services $575 million.
Canadian direct investment in Brazil stood at $25.3 billion in 2023, an increase of 20.1% from 2022. Brazil’s stock of foreign direct investment in Canada, by ultimate investor country, was $20.6 billion in 2023, making it Canada’s second largest investor in the western hemisphere (after the US) and eighth globally.
The has identified significant commercial opportunities for Canadian companies in a number of key sectors that are well suited to Canadian capabilities and interests:
- information and communications technology
- digital technologies
- clean technology
- education
- life sciences
- power and renewable energy
- aerospace
- agriculture and agri-food
In addition to these priority sectors, important opportunities for Canadian companies exist in:
- oil and gas
- mining
- defence and security
- infrastructure
- ocean technologies
- automotive
- forestry
- machinery and industrial equipment
- services and tourism
Canada and Brazil’s trade relationship continues to grow through multilateral and bilateral agreements. In 2018 Canada launched negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the Mercosur trading bloc, where Brazil is Mercosur’s permanent coordinator for negotiations with Canada. In 2020, Brazil and Canada signed a . The agreement includes the establishment of a Joint Committee to promote bilateral science, technology and innovation collaboration between Canadian and Brazilian partners from industry, academia and government. Brazil and Canada also signed in July 2020 a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding on agricultural research, which establishes a formal joint framework to underpin and enhance existing cooperation.
Related links
Partnerships and organizations
To develop effective responses to today’s most pressing global challenges, Canada and Brazil also work closely in multilateral fora, such as:
A key member of the Canadian-led Ottawa Group on World Trade Organization (WTO) Reform, Brazil also plays a constructive role in efforts to address specific challenges that put the multilateral trading system under stress, by finding ways to achieve meaningful, realistic, pragmatic reforms to the WTO over the short, medium and long terms.
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