Bolsonaro: Brazil works to meet requirements, join OECD

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said today (Jan. 15) Brazil has made significant progress in meeting the requirements to enter the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The US government announced yesterday (14) it plans to recommend Brazil as the next country to join the organization as a full member.

“This is great news. We had been working on this for months—discreetly, of course. The announcement [by the US] came out; there are over 100 requirements for being accepted; we’ve made a lot of progress, and have overcome Argentina. Brazil has a number of advantages. It’s as if Brazil were about to join the top league in football,” Bolsonaro said after leaving the Alvorada presidential residence this Wednesday morning (15).

In the president’s view, in addition to having the support of the US, Brazil has overcome obstacles from other countries and proved Brazil is a strong candidate.

In a note, the US embassy in Brasília stated that the decision at this point to prioritize Brazil’s candidacy and its efforts to start the admission process is a natural development of the commitment restated by US State Secretary Mike Pompeo and President Donald Trump in October 2019. On the occasion, however, the secretary submitted a document to OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria backing the entry of Argentina and Romania to the organization.

“The Brazilian government has worked to bring its economic policies in line with OECD norms, prioritizing the admission to the organization to bolster economic reforms,” the note from the embassy reads. “OECD,” the text goes on, “is an organization based on consensus, and any decision to invite countries to start the admission process must be made by all 36 member countries.”

OECD is made up of the world’s most industrialized countries—most of which in Europe and North America—and sets shared parameters for economic and legislative rules for its members.