Increase in dengue cases could cause a drop of R$7 billion in GDP, study warns

FIEMG

The country reached the mark of 1 million cases of the disease this week

The Federation of Industries of Minas Gerais (FIEMG) released a study on the impacts of the increase in dengue cases on the national economy. According to the data, six out of ten infected people are workers.

According to the study, Brazil faces the risk of a drop of up to R$7 billion in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) due to the reduction in productivity caused by the effects of these diseases. The survey also shows that costs related to treatment can reach R$5.2 billion.

The survey considers the three diseases transmitted by mosquitoes: dengue, zika and chikungunya, in an expected scenario with 4.2 million infected people in the country.

According to FIEMG’s chief economist, João Gabriel Pio, in addition to treatment costs, the economy loses when workers leave.

“Absenteeism, resulting from absence from work, causes significant losses to economic activity”, explains the economist.

Doctor in economics Riezo Almeida assessed that the increase in dengue cases leads to a decrease in the supply of goods and services, in addition to causing a decrease in demand for these same products.

“An economic alert is imperative, as Brazilian families face a reduction in income and a reduction in production potential due to the days lost due to dengue precautions. Collectively, the country is failing to create substantial revenues in its primary economic activities”, added the economist.

FIEMG concluded that this economic impact could result in the loss of around 130,000 jobs. Experts interviewed by CNN also highlighted that a shortage of essential goods could occur, which could lead to an increase in inflation.

D-Day against Dengue

Due to the significant increase in the number of cases, the Ministry of Health announced for this Saturday (2) the holding of D-Day to combat dengue in Brazil. It will be a day of national mobilization with the theme “10 minutes against dengue” to reinforce actions to prevent and eliminate mosquito outbreaks.

*With information from CNN

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