Lula announces measures to fight Amazon drought: ‘No one will be forgotten’

On the morning of September 10, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva visited the communities of São Sebastião do Curumitá and Campo Novo in Tefé and Manaquiri, near Manaus, where he spoke with the local population about the impacts of the drought in Amazonas. Later that day, alongside the governor and several mayors from that state, he announced measures in Manaus to combat widespread fires and drought in the region.

Many people don't understand the effort we make to visit a community of 19 families in Amazonas. These people are the so-called invisibles, those who don't live in the capitals. I came here to show that, in this country, no one will be left behind, regardless of their social status." - LUIZ INÁCIO LULA DA SILVA, President of the Republic

The event took place at the headquarters of the Manaus Free Trade Zone’s Superintendent’s Office [Superintendência da Zona Franca de Manaus/SUFRAMA]. On Tuesday, six cities in Amazonas affected by the drought were officially recognized by the Federal Government to be in a state of emergency. In all, this status has been recognized for 21 municipalities due to the climate disaster. The measure allows for the rapid release of resources and support.

The announcement pertains to the public bidding processes for four maintenance dredging operations in the Amazon and Solimões rivers. Over five years, a total of BRL 500 million (approximately USD 88.27 million) will be invested to ensure navigability and maintain the flow of supplies, mitigating the impact of the severe drought affecting the region. A contract was also signed regarding the resumption of work on the BR-319 highway. The projects are part of federal actions in response to the worst drought the Amazon has faced in 45 years.

The president justified the importance of the federal delegation's visit to the state. "Many people do not understand the effort we make to visit a community made up of 19 families in Amazonas. These people are the so-called invisible, those who do not live in the capital cities. I came here to show that, in this country, no one will be left behind, regardless of their social status,” said Lula.

“I speak without fear of being wrong: I doubt that, in the history of Brazil, any president has invested as much in the Amazon — and the mayors have never been treated as well — as during my administrations,” added the President.

The maintenance dredging and nautical signaling works will take place on four stretches of the Amazon River: Manaus - Itacoatiara; Coari - Codajás, Benjamin Constant - Tabatinga and Benjamin Constant - São Paulo de Olivença.

The current wildfire season, worsened by climate change, is occurring amid one of the worst droughts in the Amazon since mid-2023. The region is facing extreme weather conditions, which increase the likelihood and intensity of wildfires. More than 330,000 people have already been affected by the state of emergency in the municipalities of the Legal Amazon impacted by the fires.

During the dry season, as the river water levels decrease, beaches and rock formations begin to appear. As a result, dredging is necessary to remove the accumulated sediment in the navigable channel and re-establish the minimum safe depth for navigation, as required by the Brazilian Navy.

The dredging is carried out in specific areas, known as critical points—locations where sediment has accumulated and not along the entire riverbed. In compliance with environmental licensing, the removed sediment is deposited at another location in the river, outside the navigation channel.

The installation of nautical signaling, also part of the contract, is another measure that aims to increase safety and provide guidance for the vessels regarding the paths that must be followed and the dangers to be avoided.

CROSS-CUTTING ACTION – The Minister of Integration and Regional Development, Waldez Góes, recalled the government’s cross-cutting actions during the crisis last year. “We contributed with almost BRL 90 million to humanitarian aid plans drawn up by the Ministry of Integration and Regional Development [Ministério da Integração e Desenvolvimento Regional] alone. This was in direct support of municipal governments, through dialog with members of Congress and mayors, adjusting work plans. It is already a practice of President Lula’s government to be close to the suffering population at these times and to establish direct relationships with local authorities and governments,” he stated.

“This year has been no different. President Lula instructed Minister Rui Costa to set up a specific Situation Room to deal with the drought in the Amazon — involving several ministries — and has already held meetings with all governors and teams from ministries and state governments. We will continue to support what is a common rule: food, fuel for where it is still possible to help, employability of Ministry of Defense [Ministério da Defesa] equipment and mainly water,” added Góes.

We will bring forward the payment of Bolsa Família to September 17, the first calendar day. Caixa Econômica Federal will already be making BRL 494 million available to be paid to 656 thousand families across the state of Amazonas” – WELLINGTON DIAS, Minister of Social Development and Assistance, Family and the Fight Against Hunger

BRINGING FORWARD THE BOLSA FAMÍLIA — In the same vein, the Minister of Social Development and Assistance, Family and Fight against Hunger, Wellington Dias, said that, based on the lessons learned last year, federal recognition of emergency situations is necessary in order to quickly help the population. "We're bringing forward the payment of Bolsa Família to September 17, the first day of the calendar. Caixa Econômica Federal will already be making R$494 million available to be paid to 656,000 families throughout the state of Amazonas", he announced.

Minister of Health Nísia Trindade pointed out that the issues raised by local administrators throughout last year revealed the scale of the challenge to be faced. “We have a lot of work to do together in this reconstruction. This is President Lula’s instruction. Last year, funds were transferred to this region; part of them were a single emergency installment and part of the BRL 225 million were to balance out the entire field of ​​medium and high complexity care,” she highlighted.

Minister of Indigenous Peoples Sonia Guajajara explained some of the struggles faced by indigenous people. "This alters their whole lifestyle. It is the river that provides food, it is the fish that die and are no longer there, it is smoke that causes all these respiratory diseases. And this also affects culture, because many of the rituals are carried out in the water - and, with streams, rivers and creeks all drying up, this hits them hard," she said. "We are here, as part of this delegation, to reaffirm our commitment: that we will continue working together to combat this drought," she stressed.

Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Marina Silva highlighted that the Amazon Fund [Fundo Amazônia] is going to assign over BRL 737 million in incentives to the 78 municipalities that reduce deforestation. “The government, in partnership with states, has reduced deforestation in these municipalities by 42% since 2023. Last year, by 50%. This year, by 45%. But it is still not enough. This is why new measures must be taken. This partnership with municipalities is towards environmental and land regularization and sustainable development plans,” she stated.

Silva also spoke about a new proposal: a global fund for countries that keep their forests alive. “This fund will provide resources in the order of USD 300 million so that those who preserve forests can receive the equivalent of the preserved forest. We want this to be operational by COP30. The proposal was presented in Dubai, at the G20 and will be presented again in Azerbaijan. We are discussing it with the World Bank, with several sectors and sovereign funds,” reiterated the minister.

CLEAR CONCERN — The governor of Amazonas, Wilson Lima, said that the visit by President Lula and his ministerial entourage was a clear demonstration of the federal government's concern about the current situation in the state. "We had a very productive and very important agenda, because the President, alongside ministers who occupy important positions and who have the power to make decisions to alleviate the suffering of our population, visited communities and had the opportunity to see how low the river has fallen and the suffering that our most vulnerable population is facing at this time of difficulty in accessing water," he said.

MAYORS — The Mayor of Rio Preto da Eva and president of the Amazon Association of Municipalities [Associação Amazonense de Municípios/AAM] anderson Sousa, recognized the Federal Government’s efforts in dealing with the crisis. “We are certain that we will be able to appease and alleviate the suffering of our population. So I am happy and grateful for the President always serving the state of Amazonas. Last year was a great year and I am certain that our demands will be met and that we will not leave empty-handed,” he said.

Highlighting the importance of the dredging work, the Mayor of Urucurituba, Claudenor Pontes, paid tribute to the victims who lost their lives due to the drought. “Not only do we suffer from the catastrophes and the hardship in managing them, but we also lose our loved ones, especially during the drought, with the sandbars that form in our rivers and lakes,” he said.

DREDGING — The Brazilian Ministry of Ports and Airports [Ministério de Portos e Aeroportos/MPor] earmarked BRL 92.8 million for the dredging of the Manaus - Itacoatiara section of the Amazon River. The remaining stretches announced on Tuesday are in the contracting phase — final amounts and companies will be known after the bidding process is completed. The contract values are estimated at BRL 129.1 million for Section 2 (Coari-Codajás); BRL 139.8 million for Section 3 (Benjamin Constant - Tabatinga); and BRL 112.3 million for section 4 (Benjamin Constant - São Paulo de Olivença).

With the exception of section 1, on the Amazon River, all other dredging operations are concentrated in the Solimões River. All announced operations will be carried out by the National Department of Transportation Infrastructure [Departamento Nacional de Infraestrutura de Transportes/DNIT] over the course of five years.

BR-319 — The contract term establishing the resumption of construction of BR-319 Amazonas Lote C was signed by representatives of the National Department of Transportation Infrastructure and the company LCM Construções. The highway will connect Manaus, in Amazonas and Porto Velho, in Rondônia.

OTHER ACTIONS — Other actions underway to mitigate the effects of the drought and dry spell in the Amazon region include the dredging of the Travessia of the Madeira River section in Humaitá, in the state of Amazonas (contract value of BRL 7.8 million); another dredging operation on the Madeira River, this one in the critical stretches between Porto Velho (state of Rondonia) and Manicoré (state of Amazonas) and the section where the river is crossed by the BR-230 highway, in Humaitá (BRL 151 million. Another action front includes the dredging of the Navigation Canal of the Tapajós River in the critical section between Itaituba and Santarém (state of Pará), with an estimated contract value of BRL 117.3 million.

WATER PURIFIERS — Earlier on Tuesday, during the visit of the Federal Government delegation to the communities of São Sebastião do Curumitá and Campo Novo, in Tefé and Manaquiri, in Manaus, distribution of 150 portable water purifiers to the population facing difficulties in transporting water was also announced. The equipment was donated by private companies and produced by the São Paulo startup PWTech. Transported by the Brazilian Air Force [Força Aérea Brasileira/FAB], the purifiers are already at the Manaus Air Base.

The severe drought is hampering the logistics of transporting water to the municipalities affected by the disaster — a problem that will be alleviated by the donations. The purifiers are made with advanced technology, 100% Brazilian, efficient and easy to use. The same purifiers were also used to serve the population of Rio Grande do Sul affected by the floods at the end of April.

The President was accompanied by the governor of Amazonas, Wilson Lima; the mayor of Manaquiri, Jair Aguiar; senators Eduardo Braga and Omar Aziz; and by the delegation of ministers Rui Costa (Staff Office House/Casa Civil), Waldez Góes (Integration and Regional Development/Integração e do Desenvolvimento Regional); Wellington Dias (Social Development and Assistance, Family and the Fight against Hunger/Desenvolvimento e Assistência Social, Família e Combate à Fome); Marina Silva (Environment and Climate Change/Meio Ambiente e Mudança do Clima); Nísia Trindade (Health/Saúde) and Sonia Guajajara (Indigenous Peoples/Povos Indígenas); Silvio Costa Filho (Ports and Airports); and José Múcio (Defense).