Under the lead of President Lula, Brazil witnessed a program aimed at the revival of the country’s shipping industry. Titled Promef, the program was incepted to breathe life to the dormant naval industry of Brazil which had been weighing heavily on the economy. The situation was pressing. With every financial cycle, Brazil was losing out on opportunities to prosper. So, creation of Promef and its success in the years to follow had become the need of the hour, says Sergio Machado, former president, Transpetro.
There was an urgency to renew the entire maritime fleet to stabilize the Brazilian economy. In fact, the average of the fleet was 23 years old majority of them were single hulled. This meant that these ships could not meet the international safety standards and environmental requirements and thus could not ply on international waters. This was the short coming which stopped Brazil from competing on a global level, emphasizes Sergio Machado. So, Brazil had no option but to charter foreign vessels for its international export and import. This created an annual deficit of USD 6 billion.
Launching Promef was the most sensible decision. It was well thought and well planned. Above all, it was well facilitated and supported by the resources available in the country. Brazil had areas where shipyards could be constructed. Metallurgical industry was more than sufficient to supply the raw materials and there was an abundance of human resource. The odds were in favor of Brazil. In the results were supremely impressive. Promef caused an entire overhaul of the shipping industry and reinstated its stature on the global front. Brazilian Naval Industry is on an extremely prospective path and shall continue to help Brazil emerge as a stronger nation.
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