Gateway House’s Akshay Mathur recently visited Brazil to attend a BRICS-themed conference, organised by the National Association of Research and Graduate Programs in the Social Sciences. In this blog, he writes about his first impressions of the country and the similarities between India and Brazil that he observed.

India’s extreme dependence on imported energy often renders our economy vulnerable in the face of geopolitical changes. Given the high financial viability, India, being the world’s second-largest producer of sugarcane, should emulate Brazil by replacing petrol with ethanol as fuel.

Brazil, despite the presence of good leadership, several consistent and successful development programs, and recording their lowest unemployment rate, witnessed widespread protests this June – triggers for which weren't conventional. What are the Brazilians protesting against, and what does it indicate?

According to the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, the Latin American region is expected to grow at 3% in 2013. Although the growth appears modest, it is not bad given the GDP contraction in the Eurozone in the past two years and the lower growth rates in the rest of the world

Today, despite Indian exports to Peru expected to cross the $ 1 billion mark in 2014, we are at a disadvantage vis-a-vis the exports from Peru's free trade agreement (FTA) partners. Why is it imperative for New Delhi to initiate negotiations with Lima and address the disadvantages of our exporters to their markets?

The Aditya Birla Group has emerged as the Indian company with the largest annual business turnover in Latin America. Having made significant investments in the manufacture of aluminium, carbon black and viscose yarn, the Group is now exploring newer areas for investment

In 'India-Latin America Engagements', the Latin America Desk at Gateway House presents a selection of news of India’s engagement with the region during the previous month

In 'Latin America Update' Gateway House lists some of the important events in Latin America over the past month

Though Brazil is a vibrant democracy, grievances over inadequate provision of public services and government overspending will not be resolved quickly due to the political disconnect with the needs of the people. Fernando Veloso blogs about the possible determinants and consequences of the protests

Jindal’s integrated mining and steel project in Bolivia was the largest contract secured by an Indian company in Latin America. The project, which ultimately became a victim of the country's domestic politics, has lessons for Indian companies venturing into Latin America