Social situation Reducing poverty and inequality

Brazil has high social inequality. While the economically stronger regions in southern and south-eastern Brazil, such as São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, are benefiting from industrialisation and international trade, many rural areas in the country's north and north-east are disproportionately affected by poverty and inadequate infrastructure. Income disparity is also high. Brazil’s → Gini coefficient – a measure of income inequality – is one of the highest in the world. Indigenous and Afro-Brazilian communities are especially socially and economically disadvantaged.

Yet there has also been some progress. Social programmes such as Bolsa Família have helped to reduce extreme poverty and improve access to education and healthcare. In July 2025, Brazil was removed from the World Hunger Map of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). According to the FAO, the country had been able to lift 24 million people out of severe food insecurity over the previous two years, and to bring extreme poverty down to 4.4 per cent.