Ana Paula Marra
Reporter - Agência Brasil

Brasília - President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva reiterated today that employment remains an "obsession" of the government, and he recalled that 2 million formal jobs (with signed working papers) were created last year.

Speaking in Guarulhos (SP), at a ceremony to sign the Residential Leasing Program, Lula insisted that 2005 will be a promising year and that "gone are the days when Brazil behaved like a Third World country, destitute and dependent upon the United States and Europe."

The President pointed out that, besides the creation of new jobs. ending extreme poverty and hunger in Brazil is also a priority goal. "Another debt that Brazil has, which we have an even greater obligation to resolve, is ending extreme poverty and hunger in this country. This is a much more serious commitment, and we are surely going to eliminate [these conditions]. We are striving for this," Lula said.

He added that in the coming years the government will also continue investing in construction and basic sanitation. "We are aware that each cent we devote to treating water and collecting and treating sewage is money we don't need to spend on health."

Translation: David Silberstein