Brazil announces major privatization program

The Brazilian government Tuesday announced a large package of concessions and privatizations to be carried out next year.

The 32-project package included airports, interstate highways, ports, sanitation companies, as well as firms in the electric and oil sector. The government aims to raise 24 billion Brazilian reals(7.23 billion U.S. dollars) through the package.

Mines and Energy Minister Fernando Coelho Filho said that the concession of three hydroelectric power plants included in the package alone will raise 11 billion reals (3.31 billion dollars).

It was the first privatization package since Michel Temer took over as the Brazilian president on Aug. 31, following the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff.

The package is a way to boost economic growth of Brazil, according to the Brazilian government.

The country is going through a recession, which has been worsened by the political crisis sweeping over Brazilian politics for over a year, and prospects are not positive in 2016.

For 2016, the federal government expects a primary deficit of 170 billion reals (51.2 billion dollars). Next year, with the privatizations and other measures to increase revenue, the government expects to reduce the primary deficit to 139 billion reals (41.8 billion dollars). Endi