OWIT at Brazil Week 2025
By Lilian Marins
Ambassador Enio Cordeiro, Consul General of Brazil in Toronto, and Lilian Marins
OWIT Toronto was honoured to participate in Brazil Week 2025 in September, organized by our partner, the Brazil-Canada Chamber of Commerce (BCCC). It brought together business leaders, policymakers, and trade experts to explore new possibilities for bilateral cooperation. Represented by board members Lilian Marins and Susan Baka, OWIT contributed to discussions that combined trade policy, economic opportunity, and the human dimension of international business.
From the opening sessions, one message was clear: this is a pivotal moment to strengthen Brazil–Canada partnerships. Brazil has achieved record trade surpluses since 2023, exporting to more than 190 markets — a diversification strategy that has proven resilient even amid U.S. tariffs. At the same time, Canada remains one of the most open economies to foreign investment, with provinces such as Ontario and Quebec actively attracting FDI through agencies like Invest Ontario and Investissement Québec.
The data tells a compelling story: in 2024, Brazil exported nearly CAD 10B to Canada, mainly metals, sugar, chemicals, and agrifood products, while Canada exported CAD 2.5B to Brazil, with fertilizers, machinery, and aircraft at the forefront. Canadian FDI stock in Brazil exceeds CAD 20B, while Brazilian FDI in Canada is growing steadily, particularly in mining, clean tech, and innovation. In the first half of 2025 alone, Brazilian exports to Canada rose 25% year-over-year, reaching US$3.4B.
Sectoral discussions during Brazil Week pointed to natural complementarities:
- Energy & CleanTech: Canadian expertise in ESG mining and renewables aligns with Brazil’s ambitious energy transition.
- Agriculture & Food Security: Brazil, a global food powerhouse, depends on imports of potash — over 90% from Canada and Russia — underscoring the importance of critical minerals to global stability.
- Life Sciences & Innovation: Ontario’s biotech and medtech firms are already forging partnerships with Brazilian hospitals, demonstrating the potential for collaboration in healthcare innovation.
- Smart Mobility & Technology: From aerospace integration to AI-driven agritech, innovation is a natural bridge between both economies.
Yet Brazil Week was more than figures and sectors. It was about perspectives that shape the future of trade. A particularly striking moment came when a McCarthy Tétrault speaker observed:“If you want to see a war, leave people hungry. We will reach the point where it’s no longer about trade — it will be about life." This reminder resonated deeply with participants: trade is not an abstract concept, but a driver of food security, peace, and human well-being.
OWIT is proud to have been part of these conversations, which also highlighted the role of women in international trade. The presence of ApexBrasil, represented by Ana Paula Repezza, Renata Amaral, and Tatiana Prazeres, reaffirmed that empowering women leaders is not optional; it is essential to building inclusive, resilient, and sustainable trade systems.
After three days of discussions, one conclusion stood out: the Brazil–Canada relationship is not just about trade flows. It is about building bridges, both economic and cultural, as well as human. OWIT Toronto, through the active engagement of board members Lilian Marins and Susan Baka, was proud to contribute to this dialogue and to reaffirm its mission: ensuring that women are central to shaping the future of global commerce.
