Senador Modestino Gonçalves is a Brazilian

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil, being the fourth largest state by area and the second largest in number of inhabitants with a population of 20,539,989 according to the 2022 Brazilian census, 2022 census. Located in ...

Geography

Its population as of 2020 was 4,105 living in a total area of . The city belongs to the statistical mesoregion of

Jequitinhonha Jequitinhonha () is a Brazilian municipality located in the northeast of the state of Minas Gerais. Geography The population was estimated to be 25,474 people living in a total area of 3,518 km². The city belongs to the mesoregion of Jequ ...

and to the statistical

microregion Microregion is a designation for territorial entities. Austria Brazil Klaus Roth and Ulf Brunnbauer A microregion is a geographic region of a size between that of a community and that of a district.p. 18, "What's in a Region? Southeast Europ ...

of Diamantina. It became a municipality in 1962.IBGE
/ref> The municipal seat of Senador Modestino Gonçalves is located at an elevation of 743 meters in the upper

Jequitinhonha River The Jequitinhonha River () flows mainly through the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. Its source lies near Diamantina in the Espinhaço Mountains at an elevation of , after which it flows northward and then east-northeastward across the uplands. ...

valley. It is northeast of Diamantina to which it is connected by secondary highways. The nearest major population center is

Itamarandiba Itamarandiba () is a Brazilian municipality located in the north-center of the state of Minas Gerais. Its population was 34,936 living in a total area of 2,736 km2. Location The city belongs to the statistical mesoregion of Jequitinhonha ...

, which had 31,000 inhabitants in 2007. The distance to

is 48 km; and the distance to

Belo Horizonte Belo Horizonte is the List of largest cities in Brazil, sixth-largest city in Brazil, with a population of around 2.3 million, and the third largest metropolitan area, containing a population of 6 million. It is the List of cities in Sout ...

is 373 km. Neighboring municipalities are: Diamantina -

Felício dos Santos Felício dos Santos is a Brazilian municipality located in the center-north of the state of Minas Gerais. Its population was 4,704 living in a total area of 358 km². The city belongs to the statistical mesoregion of Jequitinhonha and to ...

Carbonita Carbonita is a municipality in the northeast of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. the population was 9,414 in a total area of 1,454 km2. The elevation of the town center is 751 meters. The city belongs to the Immediate Geographic Region ...

and

São Gonçalo do Rio Preto São Gonçalo do Rio Preto is a Brazilian municipality in the state of Minas Gerais. Its population as of 2020 was 3,173 living in a total area of 313 km2. Geography The city belongs to the statistical mesoregion of Jequitinhonha and to ...

. The municipality contains the

Mata dos Ausentes Ecological Station Mata dos Ausentes Ecological Station () is a state-administered ecological station in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Location The station was created by decree on 23 September 1974, modified on 28 December 1994. It covers . It lies in the municipality o ...

, a fully protected conservation unit in the

valley.

Economy

The main economic activities are services, and agriculture. The GDP in 2005 was R$16 million, with 10 million from services, 2 million from industry, and 3 million from agriculture. There were 632 rural producers on 27,000 hectares of land. Only 14 farms had tractors (2006). The main crops cultivated were coffee, urucum, sugarcane, beans, and corn. There were 7,000 head of cattle (2006). In 2007 there was 1 bank in the town.

Development indicators

Modestino Gonçalves is ranked in the bottom tier of municipalities in the state and country in human development. It is one of the poorest municipalities in Minas Gerais. *Municipal

Human Development Index The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistical composite index of life expectancy, Education Index, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income i ...

: 0.626 (2000) *State ranking: 794 out of 853 municipalities as of 2000 *National ranking: 4197 out of 5,138 municipalities as of 2000 *Literacy rate: 71% *Life expectancy: 63 (average of males and females)Frigoletto
/ref>

Health and education

There was one health clinic in 2005. Patients with more serious health conditions are transported to Diamantina or to Itamarandiba. Educational needs were met by 21 primary schools and one middle school (2007).

References

1962 establishments in Minas Gerais Municipalities in Minas Gerais {{MinasGerais-geo-stub

Geography

Economy

Development indicators

Health and education

See also

References