Brazil Resolves to Deal With Its Gap Between Rich, Poor

RIO DE JANEIRO — Despite advances in the 20th century, Brazil enters the new year facing the huge problem of one of the world’s biggest gaps between rich and poor, Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso said Friday.

“We want to be the cradle of a society in which everyone starts with equal opportunities,” Cardoso said at a naval school here. “We will only achieve this with public policies aimed at reducing poverty and with broader education of higher quality.”

Brazil, also Latin America’s biggest economy, is a land of extremes with a massive gap between rich and poor. Most of Brazil’s 165 million people earn the minimum wage of 136 reals--about $75--a month, or less.

Cardoso listed advances Brazil has made such as developing a democratic political system and building up local industries but said more challenges lie ahead.

“If we look forward, we feel there is still much to be done,” he said. “We want progress, but hand in hand with quality of life for all Brazilians and with respect for the environment.”