Within South America, Brazil and Colombia are the countries that spent the most on defense and security in the period from 2006 to 2010, according to the Center for Strategic Defense, a part of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUL). According to the preliminary report, countries in the region spent US$ 126.1 billion in the period, an average of US$ 25.2 billion for each nation.

The defense spending figures represent an average of 4.14% of total annual government expenditure and 0.91% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the region. The report will be sent to the Ministers of Defense of UNASUL member countries. They will meet this Wednesday in Asuncion, Paraguay, to evaluate the contents of the document and adopt policies deemed appropriate.

Brazil was responsible for spending the equivalent of 43.7% of the total invested by UNASUL countries, followed by Colombia, with 17%, Venezuela (10.7%), Chile (9%) and Argentina (8.3%).

Among the countries that invested the least was Ecuador (4.5%), Peru (4%), Uruguay (1.3%), Bolivia (0.9%), Paraguay (0.5%), Suriname (0.1%) and Guyana (0.1%).

 

Source:
Agência Brasil