First official visit of the Secretary of State for the Portuguese Communities with Portuguese and Portuguese descendants in Brazil

First official visit of the Secretary of State for the Portuguese Communities with Portuguese and Portuguese descendants in Brazil

The official visit of the Secretary of State for the Portuguese Communities, Paulo Cafôfo, to meet the Portuguese and Portuguese descendants in Brazil takes place from January 26^th to February 4^th. The itinerary starts in Brasilia and passes through Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Santos, and Belo Horizonte, ending in Salvador da Bahia.

The visit is part of the set of initiatives with the Diaspora, for this term of office, called "Portugal in the World: Ways to Enhance the Portuguese Communities", with the aim of strengthening ties and bringing the Portuguese living abroad closer to their country and, at the same time, contributing to a present-day vision of the Diaspora.

The Secretary of State will visit the Portuguese Embassy in Brasilia and its consular section, the Consulates-General of Portugal in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Belo Horizonte and Salvador, and the Consular Office in Santos.

As part of the work done by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to upgrade the working conditions of the administrative staff of Diplomatic Missions and Consular Posts around the world, a Decision was published in the Government's Journal regarding accumulated losses, for the benefit of these employees in Brazil, To mitigate the relevant impacts of currency depreciation, the Decision allows for a mid-term review of the salary scales applicable in the External Peripheral Services (EPS) when there is an evident loss of purchasing power, as is the case in Brazil with the Real. Thus, the workers in question will have their salaries updated by 48.9%, retroactive to January 1^st, 2022.

The valorization of professionals in the Foreign Affairs area is at the center of the Ministry's focus, aware that the formulation, coordination, and execution of the Portuguese Foreign Policy in all its dimensions is based on reinforced and recognized human resources.

The Secretary of State, Paulo Cafôfo, will visit and maintain contacts with different institutions and associations, with the perspective of deepening knowledge of the Portuguese community in Brazil.

The agenda, dedicated to the areas of Education, Culture, Society and Economy, foresees meetings with representatives of the Portuguese Communities and Community Counsellors, Portuguese and Brazilian entrepreneurs and businessmen and visits to associative institutions to get a closer knowledge of the social and cultural offer, as well as the teaching of the Portuguese language and culture.

Meetings with Brazilian authorities are also to be highlighted, namely a courtesy meeting with the counterpart Secretary of the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs responsible for the Communities, Ambassador Leonardo Gorgulho, as well as with representatives of the State Governments of São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Bahia and the Municipalities of São Paulo, Santos, Salvador da Bahia and Belo Horizonte.

Also, to be noted is a dinner with members of the diplomatic corps accredited in Brasilia, which will be attended by the Director-General of the International Organization for Migration, António Vitorino.

The Portuguese community in Brazil has around one million citizens.