Migratory dynamics and the occupation process in central-western Brazil: The case of the State of Mato Grosso

Abstract

The State of Mato Grosso is one of the last frontier areas in Brazil, and still shows some potential for populations that continue to seek alternatives for migration. Concurrently with the process of “urbanization of the frontier,” one can see other phenomena in the state that are having strong impacts on the opening up of new possibilities for realigning the population in the territory, such as small farm settlements and new pioneering projects, which would have positive impacts for the continued demographic occupation of the state. After having gone through an intense process of occupation until the mid-1980s, Mato Grosso’s demographic growth slowed down considerably. At the same time, however, it also continued to show relative dynamism in general. The present article is based on analyses of data from the Demographic and Agricultural Censuses and from interviews held in Mato Grosso, and analyzes migratory trends in the state and their impacts on the process of occupation of the state in recent years. Special emphasis is given to the behavior of several areas that are representative of the most important processes now underway. The author also seeks to locate these processes of change in the patterns of economic occupation. The analyses show strong association between the two phenomena, namely, on the one hand, the impact of extensive land-use activities such as cattle raising, soybeans, and cotton in reducing the possibilities for absorbing migrants in the rural areas and, on the other, the “compensating” effects of land reform settlements.