Quick Facts:

- Capital: Salvador

- Pop: 2,700,000

- State Pop: 12,541,745

- Area: 567,295  km² (218,924 mi² ) size of France

- Economy:  Agriculture, Cattle, Industry, Mining, Tourism

Where Brazil began - 1500.

The Bahia State area is 567,295 km², this is the size of France and makes it the largest of Brazil’s

 northeastern states. Situated between the equator and the Tropic of Capricorn, it enjoys a tropical climate with annual average temperatures between 19º and 27º C and rainfall from 2,000 mm in the coastal plain region to 360 mm in the northern low-lands of the São Francisco basin. The State has 12.5 million inhabitants of whom almost 20% live in the capital, Salvador. Other major cities are Feira de Santana, Ilhéus, Vitória da Conquista, ltabuna, Juazeiro, Jequié, Luis Eduardo Magalhães, Barreiras and Porto Seguro.

With its size and strategic geographic position in the 180 million Brazilian market (itself part of the considerably larger - and growing - Mercosur economic community, its vast natural resources, diversified economic base, proven growth potential and outward - oriented business climate, Bahia offers the international investor a powerful combination of advantages.

All major centers of economic activity are accessible by 4,400 km of federal highways which also link Bahia to the rest of the country. ln addition, there are some 18,400 km of mostly asphalt secondary motorways as well as over 100,000 km of local roads connecting the State’s 417 municipalities.

The rail system consists of three trunk lines (total length: 1,900 km) which originate in Salvador and fan out to cross over into Minas Gerais to the South, Pernambuco to the North and Sergipe along the coast respectively. Sea-bound freight is handled by three ports: Salvador (general cargoes, containers, grains), Aratu (bulk solids and liquids, gaseous products) and Ilhéus (general cargoes, containers, liquid fuel). All have deep berths (8 to 12 m) and a 70% to 80% capacity utilization. Salvador’s Deputado Luís Eduardo Magalhães International Airport is served by regular domestic and international flights as well as tourist charter flights from cities in Europe, South America and the United States. Two other main airports, Ilhéus and Porto Seguro, are frequent destinations for Brazil's major airlines and also receive international charter flights. Some 100 airfields serve the State’s smaller urban centers.

Bahia is drained by perennial river basins, most notably the São Francisco basin, which spans the generally arid central-western and northwestern regions of the State. The main industrial centers, located in Greater Salvador and Feira de Santana, get most of their water supply from the reservoir of the Pedra do Cavalo Complex on the Paraguaçu River.

Most electric energy used in Bahia is generated by Cia. Hidrelétrica do São Francisco, a subsidiary of Eletrobrás. The company shares the distribution market with three other enterprises, most notably Coelba, which was recently privatized.

A modern statewide telecommunications system includes telephone, Internet and data-transmission services as well as the relaying of television signals to rural areas. interstate and international telecommunications, as well as marine and computer communications, are handled by Embratel. Service quality is high and there are low congestion rates. (Bahia State Government)