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Perhaps one of the most successful films in the last decade to come out of Brazil was ‘City of God’ (‘Cidade de Deus’): the story of a group young people growing up in a Rio de Janeiro favela between the 1960s and 80s – depicting images of gang wars, drugs and violence.  Whilst fictionally based, original writer Paulo Lins was keen to highlight the realities of the day to day life of the area he was raised in, which left a lasting impression on the many global audiences who viewed the film.  Located in the borough of Jacarepaguá, in the West Zone of Rio de Janeiro – today the area has witnessed a massive change and is widely being viewed as a model example of modern Brazilian urbanisation and citizen integration.

The neighbourhood has over 40,000 inhabitants – with a significant proportion moving up to the class C demographic (citizens with an income of between R$ 1,126 to R$ 4,854).  The real changes are said to only recently have begun to change largely as a result of the removal of the ‘Red Command’ (‘Comando Vermelho’) who ruled the area over three decades.  In February 2009, the Rio de Janeiro government installed one of its teams of trained so-called ‘pacification police’ patrols (Unidade de Polícia Pacificadora, UPP) permanently in the region.  The strategic process of slow integration was deemed a success after one of the principal drug traffickers was arrested which was followed by the entry of Batalhão de Operações Especiaís (more commonly known as BOPE and translated to mean Special Police Operations Battalion) who continued to assist to capture the main gang leaders.  Today there are over 309 officials operating in the area which has resulted in homicide rate decrease of 82 percent and a drop in robberies by 72 percent.  According to state security secretary José Mariano Beltrame: “we know we have not completely removed the drug trade in the neighbourhood, but there is significantly lower level crime in the area.  There are therefore no excuses for ‘City of God’ to not have a school, hospital and other services provided by the state.”

As a result of such changes, residents of the neighbourhood have been keen to develop their own community and integrate themselves into Brazilian society further than ever before.  The country’s large business operation chains have also been attracted to the area to take advantage of the increased demand for consumer goods and services:

• in December 2010, the Bank of Brazil opened agency in the area which it is expecting to have a minimum of 10,000 customers in the first two years;
• popular cable TV supplier ‘Oi!’ have, in 2010, signed up 1,050 clients – which is forecasted to rise;
• lighting company ‘Light’ are investing R$ 8 million in the renovation of its network in the neighbourhood (whilst removing use the use of illegal sources) and has, in 2010, seen a 15 percent increase in its client base;
• ‘Sky Brasil’ have been established in the area since early 2009 and have seen a 50 increase in sales since 2010;
• ‘Ponto Frio’, one of the country’s main white goods and household electronics stores, has seen an average 15 percent increase in sales in the last two years.

Another major change that occurred in the neighbourhood for business owners has been the legalisation requirements stipulated by the ‘Empresa Bacana’ programme initiated by the Rio de Janeiro state government.  The result has been that now 15 percent of the commercial organisations (334 operations) are now formally registered – enabling them to build ties with both regional and national suppliers and profit accordingly.  A technical school, crèche and internet network were all inaugurated in the latter part of 2010 and the region is also well illuminated with the installation of 700 street lights under the ‘Light for All’ (‘Luz para Todos’) national campaign.

Whilst problems still remain – including issues with waste disposal, transport access and litter – the progress made in the region is testament to the fact that favela communities could well be a distant memory in the future Brazil.  Whether this will occur will depend on the participation of both state and national authorities to take a proactive approach to dealing with the issue as well as the responsibility inhabitants themselves to formally integrate themselves into Brazilian society and build a better future for generations to come.