Campinas

Campinas is a city and county (município) located in the state of São Paulo , Brazil . Area:801 km² (county). Population: approximately 968,000 (2000 census), with over 98% in the urban region. It is the second largestcity in the state.

History

The city was founded on July 14 , 1774 , by Barreto Leme .

Campinas was the birthplace of opera composer CarlosGomes (1836--1896).

Economics

Campinas' main economic activities are agriculture (mainly coffee , sugarcane , and cotton ), industry (textiles,machinery, agricultural equipment, chemical and petrochemical, pharmaceutics, paper and cellulose , telecommunications , computers and electronics , etc.), commerce and services.

Campinas is the center of a metropolitan region of 19 counties with a total of 2.33 million inhabitants, including Limeira , Araras , Jundiaí , Americana , Sumaré , Paulínia , and others. The region is responsible for 9%of Brazil's Gross Industrial Product, with just over 3% of the country's population. Per capita income is one of the highest inLatin America (US$ 10,000/year).

Campinas has been dubbed the Brazilian Silicon Valley , since it ishome to many national and multinational high-tech industries ( IBM , Motorola , Lucent , Nortel , Compaq , Celestica , Samsung , Alcatel , Bosch , 3M , Texas Instruments , General Motors , Honda , and many others), and to severalresearch centers and universities (such as CPqD , EMBRAPA , UNICAMP , and PUCCAMP ). It also has a sizable pharmaceutical industrysector, with companies like MedleyFarma , Sigma Pharma , Merck , etc.

The largest oil refinery of Latin America, operated by Petrobras in theneighboring county of Paulínia , has attracted many petrochemical industries tothe Campinas area, including Dupont , Rhone-Poulenc , and Shell .

Campinas is a major transportation and telecommunications hub for the State of São Paulo , as it is located on the major highways that connect the capital to the Northwest part of the State. Its international airport of Viracopos Airport has long been the State's main air cargo terminal, andits passenger traffic is rapidly expanding.

According to Wired Magazine , Campinas is one of the highest-growthhigh-tech areas in Latin America , second only to the city of São Pauloitself. Since 1995, the city received over US$ 7 billion in investments in telecommunications, information technology andelectronics. Of the 500 largest companies listed by Fortune magazine, 50 are alreadyestablished in the Campinas region.

Administration

The current Mayor is Izalene Tiene , of the Worker's Party (PT). She took office on Jan. 01, 2001 asvice-Mayor to Antonio da Costa Santos , known asToninho, who was murdered on Sep. 10, 2001. Her term expires on Dec. 31, 2004.

External links

• Official home page (in Portuguese).
• Photoalbum .
• Trade Point Campinas (export/import info).
• Current local time .
• Current weather .
• Hotel information .
• Campinas' flag
• Wired magazine story , July 2000.