Lula taps França as Brazil minister of ports, airports

President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva announced the re-creation of the ministry of ports and airports and named Márcio França to head the ministry in his incoming government.

Lula revealed Thursday the names of 16 people who will make up his administration as he prepares to take on his third term as president of Brazil. He takes office on 1 January.

With the announcement, Lula also confirmed the division of the ministry of infrastructure. The ministry of ports and airports had been abolished by Jair Bolsonaro's outgoing administration, which had incorporated the office into the ministry of infrastructure.

The national agency of waterway transport (Antaq) and the national agency of civil aviation (Anac) are expected to be linked to the ministry of ports and airports.

Márcio França has a law degree and is affiliated with the Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB). He was governor of Sao Paulo state in 2018 and served as a federal deputy for the state. Previously he was a councilman and mayor of Sao Vicente, a municipality located in the coastal region of Sao Paulo. In the 2022 elections, he was a candidate for the senate for Sao Paulo, but was defeated.

By João Petrini