UK-Brazil Conversa 2022

After 2 years in online mode, I am delighted to be able to be with you all here, in person, to speak about what has been and will be our priority for the next years: how to enhance the UK-Brazil collaboration whilst reflecting upon our areas of common interest and I am very keen we are able to advance with these conversations through the Conversa.

I want to talk to you about the UK’s foreign policy vision for the world as outlined in the Integrated Review and how we want to work with Brazil and Brazilians to not only strengthen our great friendship but turn it into a bold partnership.

I also want to talk about the breadth and strength of our relationship, which we have advanced in many areas, from science & innovation, security and dealing with emerging cyber threats, climate and green growth, expanding digital access, English language teaching, bilateral trade and more.

The Integrated Review

The UK Government set out its foreign policy vision for the role that the UK will play in the world through the Integrated Review of foreign, defence, security and development policy which was published in May last year.

It sets out the how the UK can work across all parts of government, using all of its capabilities, and most importantly through building international partnerships to meet global challenges and protect and champion our interests and values.

Our over-arching aim is to be an active force for good in the world.

That is underpinned by our fundamental values of democracy, human rights, the rule of law, freedom of speech and faith, and equality.

Globally, our work will focus on five key objectives: solving global challenges, investing in science and technology; defending democracy and human rights; championing the free flow of trade, capital and knowledge; and taking a more robust approach to security and deterrence.

Fundamentally, the review recognises that we cannot do this alone. To be successful and to meet these global challenges we have to work collaboratively. Cooperation with our allies is central to our success.

Brazil and the UK are natural allies and share an alliance founded on friendship, a shared commitment to democratic values, freedom and the market economy. We have strong and deepening bilateral, commercial, security and cultural ties. It is right that we view Brazil as a strategic partner in our efforts to meet the global challenges we face today.

Solving Global Challenges – Russia/Ukraine

And there is no bigger challenge or threat to the rules based international system than the senseless act of aggression and brutality by Russia against Ukraine and its people. A malicious act against a sovereign, independent state which if Putin wins, threatens not just Ukraine but threatens our shared democratic values on a global scale as well as our national security.

The free world has united behind Ukraine in its fight for freedom. And it’s this united stance that we must maintain, so that those that seek to undermine the integrity and self-determination of another independent nation are not only contained but will fail.

What the situation in Ukraine has shown us is that our current security and economic structures created after the Second World War are no longer fit for purpose. A new approach is needed that builds stronger global alliances and is better able to uphold the rules-based system.

Multilateral institutions must be able to support effective coordination amongst sovereign nations to ensure peaceful international cooperation. They must defend and promote fundamental freedoms, which are essential for human dignity.

As part of these needed reforms the United Kingdom is committed to the reform of the UN Security Council – another point of common interest between Brazil and the UK. We acknowledge the world has changed and the Council must change too, to better reflect the world in the twenty first century, and to better respond to the threats to international peace and security that confront us. With this we support Brazil in its ambition of a Permanent Seat as part of a reformed and expanded Security Council.

But to meet today’s challenges our prosperity and security must be built on a network of strong partnerships. Working flexible groupings of like-minded partners to face specific challenges where we share a common position.

As our Foreign Secretary has said, in this new increasingly multipolar world, the UK is prepared to do things differently, to think differently and work differently with partners to get things done.

Solving Global Challenges – Climate Change

Confronting Climate Change is another great example of the UK and Brazil successfully working together to resolve an urgent global challenge.

Brazil plays a key role as a G20 member and is home of around 60% of the Amazon rainforest. Under the UK’s COP26 Presidency - which runs from last November until next November – we are working with Brazil to implement the Glasgow Climate Pact, which Brazil helped create during the COP26 Conference in Glasgow.  This global agreement represents almost 200 countries and will accelerate action on climate necessary to limit global temperature rise to with 1.5 degrees.

During COP 26 Brazil committed to half its GHG emissions by 2030, to reach net zero by 2050 and to achieve zero illegal deforestation by 2028.  It has 14 states, over 40 cities and 200 businesses pledge to the Race to Zero Campaign. Ambitious and laudable goals which deserve greater recognition.

Implementation of these commitments is now critical. Managing emissions from deforestation, agriculture and related supply chains, including growing soy for livestock feed, will be crucial to keep the goals of limiting global temperature warming to 1.5 degrees.

Implementation will be challenging given the size of Brazil. But this could be dwarfed by the economic and social opportunities an economy-wide shift towards net zero would provide given Brazil’s natural gifts.  Momentum is building in Brazil but there is much we can do together to ensure that our post-pandemic economic recovery is based on building sustainable, resilient economies that support green jobs and sustainable land use. There are advantages a transition to a low carbon economy would bring to the economy.

When compared to business-as-usual, a low-carbon and climate resilient economic recovery in Brazil could deliver by 2030[1]

a net increase of more than two million jobs –four times more jobs than those already existing in Brazil’s oil and gas industry, a total GDP gain of US$ 535 billion (R$ 2.8 trillion) – equivalent to the annual GDP of Belgium

US$ 3.7 billion (R$ 19 billion) in additional agricultural production

US$ 144 million (R$ 742 million) in additional tax revenues from the agricultural sector alone; restoration of 12 million hectares or more of degraded pasturelands to more productive uses such as intensive grazing and natural forest

We will support Brazil’s global leadership in sustainable agriculture and to foster closer connections between the UK and Brazilian agri-tech ecosystems. We will support initiatives to boost connectivity in Brazil’s remotest areas to enable the use of precision agriculture, and stand ready to mutually share expertise on sustainability practices, and engage the private sectors from both Brazil and the UK who are an integral part of the solution.

Brazil has the largest financial sector in Latin America and this sector has a vital role to play in the transition to net zero. Only through mobilising private finance can we match the scale of investment required for the net-zero transition.

I am pleased that many major Brazilian financial institutions and asset managers came together at COP26 to join the Glasgow Finance Alliance for Net Zero. The goal of the alliance, which so far represents over $130 trillion of private finance assets, is to transform the global financial system in order to finance the investment needed to achieve a net-zero economy

The challenges are great, but the UK is committed to partner with Brazil to face them.

Brazil is one of four of the biggest recipients of International Climate Financing, totalling over £275m over 20 programmes in areas such as forests, agriculture, cities, energy transition and infrastructure. The programme mobilizes private investments into sustainable, low carbon projects and incentivises the use of emerging eco-friendly technologies.

The Brazil Energy Prosperity Programme is a crucial example of UK-Brazil cooperation in efforts to support Brazil’s transition to clean energy, supporting work on offshore wind, waste to energy, and biofuels.

And offshore wind has the potential to become a true example of partnership between the UK and Brazil. Through expanding off-shore wind Brazil has the potential to build the foundations for a huge new renewable energy sector. Supporting and complimenting hydropower, while making a major contribution to reducing Brazil’s greenhouse gas emissions, and meeting growing energy needs. The UK is the world leader in offshore wind, with more installed capacity than any other country and through initiatives such as our annual Energy Showcase event that took place this week, and technical support through the Brazil Energy prosperity programme, we are building the basis of a long term green growth partnership.

Investment in Science, Digital and Technology

It is not just in tackling climate change where a focus on innovation and technology is important. The integrated review puts investment in science digital and technology as the foundation of the UK’s future economy, security and defence policy.

Technological developments and digitisation will reshape our societies, economies and change relationships – both between states, and between the citizen, the private sector and the state.

While the proliferation of cyber capability to countries and organised crime groups, and the growing reliance on digital infrastructure, will increase our security risks. In parallel states will seek to shape the global digital environment between ‘digital freedom’ and ‘digital authoritarianism’ that will strengthen or undermine our real world democratic values. Our challenge will be that uphold these values.

Investing heavily to strengthen our leadership position as a science and technology power to maintain our lead at the cutting edge of emerging technologies; putting science and technology at the heart of our international partnerships and then working together to build transparent norms and standards that ensure their responsible use are vital to secure our future prosperity.

The Integrated Review highlights Brazil as one such country we have prioritised to deepen our science and innovation partnership.

This partnership is already strong.

Science and innovation are at the centre of the UK’s partnership with Brazil to promote mutual prosperity and economic growth and to work together to find solutions to global challenges.

This growing partnership on tech and transformative digital access is highlighted through a number of joint initiatives including:

the Newton Fund, which has played a fundamental roles in increasing scientific collaboration and innovation between our two countries in climate, agritech, health and biodiversity.

the Digital Access Programme will pilot new technologies, develop digital skills and promote cybersecurity awareness to provide equitable, safe, meaningful and inclusive digital access to underserved Brazilian communities. The UK-Brazil Tech Hub is creating connections between our start-up ecosystems, supporting tech for good ventures and female entrepreneurs to promote positive impacts responding innovatively to the most urgent local and global development challenges.

the Better Health Programme which has strengthened links between our national health systems, sharing expertise and learning as we face todays urgent global health challenges.

the programme has supported initiatives to identify digital health solutions that improve primary care delivery and expanding primary care services to remote Brazilian populations by testing a pioneering digital primary care model; and grew our partnership in genomics and precision medicine supporting the launch of the Brazil Genomas Project and the Brazil partnership with the UK Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult.

The strength of the UK Brazil innovation partnership in healthcare is ably highlighted by the partnership between Oxford University, Fiocruz and AstroZeneca that enabled the Covid19 vaccine to be produced within Brazil.

But a growing digital landscape brings with it new challenges, one where we must work together to face them. As such we are seeking a closer relationship with Brazil to tackle cybercrime and identify opportunities to work together on cybersecurity issues, supported by our Digital Access Programme.

Moving towards a world where our economic and security success depends on embracing the adoption of new emerging technologies and supporting the drive for innovation across all our priorities. But we need to ensure this drive is done so in an equitable and inclusive way and that we leave no part of society behind. To do so we both have a challenge in ensuring the next generation are supported and equipped to take advantage that this new world will bring.

The UK is a champion for education in Brazil, and through our work with the British Council we are supporting the increase in access to English language teaching and learning across Brazil reaching millions of teachers and learners.

The Skills for Prosperity programme is also working to equip youth with language skills where poor English is a barrier to access further education and employment. It also creates a model for ELT that elevates language standards in Brazil, supporting social mobility and business opportunities. This programme has already reached more than 2 million students and more than 14 thousand teachers all around Brazil, and it is part of a global UK programme developed in other eight emergent countries.

We are aiming to increase our Higher Education partnerships to further research and innovation, this year alone, through partners such as the British Council we connected over 100 Higher Education institutions in Brazil and the UK for research collaboration.

And this partnership is strengthened through our cultural ties of almost 200 years of history. These are bonds we continue to strengthen. This year alone over 200,000 Brazilians, have had the opportunity to engage face to face in a range of creative and artistic collaborations between the UK and Brazil

Championing the free flow of trade

It is clear that there is an opportunity to develop a partnership of tomorrow that focusses our cooperation through a lens of digital, tech and cyber, science and green growth that is underpinned by a deeper relationship on security to achieve our longer term mutual prosperity. But with the departure from the EU, the UK and Brazil have an opportunity to develop a tailored trading relationship that will deliver economic benefit to both sides.

The UK is competitive, connected, innovative and sustainable. The most attractive investment destination in Europe, the most globally connected economy in the G20, a global centre for innovation and venture capital investment, and committed to the greening of our economy through a green industrial revolution that will build green jobs and industries of the future.

There is much that we both can gain from a renewed focus that harnesses the potential of our connected economies to increase productivity and push the boundaries of innovation.

But we are not building from scratch. The UK and Brazil already have a strong economic relationship, with over 800 British companies currently operating in Brazil. Total trade between the UK and Brazil, including imports and exports as well as goods and services, was £6 billion in 2021.

And the UK has supported Brazil’s aspirations to become a major actor in the globalised economy, increase trade and attract international investment. We have been a vocal supporter of Brazil’s aspirations to join the OECD, providing support to Brazil’s alignment with OECD standards and best practices, and providing support to BNDES in efforts to foster private sector participation in sustainable infrastructure projects and to consolidate the green finance market in Brazil.

In the last Economic and Financial Dialogue, our finance ministers agreed to efforts to boost our trading relationship further, making new agreements on financial services, double taxation, sustainable growth and Green Finance, helping to boost jobs and investments for both our countries.

Free trade and free markets are powerful engines of progress and we will always champion economic freedom and uphold the free flow of trade, capital and knowledge. The UK is building new trade links and working on free trade agreements. We are deepening our trade relationship with our strategic partners, and hope to do so with Brazil.

But as the Integrated Review highlights, the economy has a growing role to play in security. Access to the global economy is not a given. It must be earned and countries must play by the rules of the international system. Those that break those rules should held to account, and the UK will seek to use the economic levers at our disposal to ensure adherence.

By working together, expanding trade, and diversifying where we source our strategic goods we can reduce dependence and deprive any aggressors of their leverage and strengthen our own economic security.

Conclusion

The UK recognises that the world has changed. We are ready to work differently with our allies and partners to forge a better, more secure world and a stronger global economy.

In Brazil, we have the opportunity to translate this new approach to one that delivers in practice. Here, our ultimate goal is to become the country’s partner of choice in Europe, bring our cultures closer, close the trade gap and move forward with key partnerships in the areas of common interest.

Brazil is a key strategic partner in trade, science and security and we recognise its leading role not just in the region but on the global stage where Brazil is a natural ally to the UK in many ways. Be it in efforts to uphold a rules based international system; promoting our shared democratic values of open societies and open trade; or developing new international economic and security structures fit for today’s global challenges.

Working together we can secure our mutual prosperity and security.

[1] WRI report supported by Lord Stern