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The Americas

Bolsonaro battles on

Sarah Maslin: Brazil correspondent, The Economist, SÃO PAULO

Covid-19, fires and scandals will not bring down Brazil’s president

2021 in brief

Costa Rica aims to generate 100% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2021. It
has also extended a moratorium on oil extraction and exploitation from 2021 until the
end of 2050

IN 2021 BRAZIL’S president, Jair Bolsonaro, will have to navigate a perilous path to save
the economy without sacrificing his popularity. The coronavirus pandemic cemented his
reputation as an international pariah. As Brazil’s death toll climbed to the second-
highest in the world, Mr Bolsonaro told a reporter, “So what?” At home, though, many
seem to be getting used to their provocative president. Amid scandals in his family and
fires in the rainforest, his approval rating rose.