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Macapa is a city in the far north of Brazil and is the latest Brazilian city to welcome the much publicised Minha Casa Minha Vida affordable housing programme. The programme, now in it's forth year is not only helping reduce the massive housing shortage in the country but is attracting a wave of foreign investors keen to cash in on the programmes success. Macapa is the the capital of Amapa State, which borders the territory of French Guiana. The city itself is very unusual as it sits exactly on the equator, which in fact divides the built-up area into two parts. The location of Macapa is on the northern branch of the Amazon River delta. Macapa is the only state capital in Brazil which has no direct highway connection to any other state capital. Although there are of course many roads, some major entering and leaving the city to and from other places. The width of the Amazon at the coast cuts Macapa off from easy access to most of the rest of Brazil. The metropolitan area has a total population of almost exactly half a million. This number represents over half of all the people in the State. The city was granted full urban status in 1856. It is situated about 350 Km from the city of Belem to which it can only connect directly by ship or aircraft. It is actually more possible to travel overland to the 'three Guianas' which border the area to the north. The business of the region is mainly connected with mining and lumbering. In particular this includes gold, iron, tin and several types of high-grade manganese on the one hand and tropical timber on the other. Manufacturing including vehicles and fishing (both river and sea) are both significant. Much of this produce is exported from the city's main port, Porto Sontana, to other coastal cities in Brazil. The name of the city, Macapa, is a variation of the local 16th century Tupi tribal word meaning "place of many bacabas (a species of palm tree in the area)". Originally founded by Spanish explorers the site was soon acquired by the Portuguese. The area enjoys (or suffers, depending on your point of view) a very high annual rainfall ( up to two thousand mm.) and the natural vegetation is tropical rainforest. Local soil can be disappointing for agricultural purposes because the high level of rainfall tends to ‘wash' out many of the natural nutrients in it. The district is a central point for many migrating species of birds as well as the local varieties. These include flamingoes and toucans. Larger creatures in the city surroundings and elsewhere in the wider state are numerous. Giant alligators, turtles ( both sea and river) and manatees are animals which often surprise visitors by their size and plentiful numbers. There are several historical sites, demonstrating the rich cultural heritage of the area. A popular site with visitors is the Sao Jose Fort, built towards the end of the eighteenth century. It's an example of the French influence on the area, projected from neighbouring French Guiana. It took many years to build, most of the labour being forced from local tribes or indeed slaves from elsewhere. Another popular destination is the Church of Sao Jose de Macapa, built in 1761. It is in fact the oldest building in the city, or at least that is what many people believe. The Church is famous for its ‘jesuit' style architecture.
Macapa is a prime location for social housing developments with a number of major Brazilian and European property developers already in the process of securing land for Minha Casa Minha Vida housing developments due to launch this years.
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