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GRTU meets shortlisted Maltese Consul for Brazil
03 August 2010
GRTU has this week met Prof Thales Castro who has been shortlisted for the post of Honorary Consul of Malta in Brazil. Thales Cavalcanti Castro, who is 35 years old, holds a BA cum laude in International Studies and an MA in Public Affairs from Indiana University where he was an honours graduate and featured on the Dean's list.
He also holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Pernambuco, in Recife, Brazil. He is a Professor at the Catholic University of Pernambuco ( 11,000 students) where he holds the positions of Coordinator of the economics degree programme and of Dean for International and Inter-institutional Affairs. He is also involved in the University's Latin American Studies Institute, of which he was President for some time. He has lectured both locally and internationally and has written three books and a number of articles on his major areas of expertise, namely international relations theory, . international security, and Brazilian foreign policy.
Since 1990 Prof Castro has been active in business consultancy. Last year he set up his own consultancy company , by the name of Ultrade, which operates internationally in the areas of international trade and investment strategies.
Recife is the largest city in the north-eastern State of Pernambuco, with an urban centre of around 3 million persons. It plays host to the largest number of consulates, both career and honorary, in that State. Some 60 kms away lies Suape, one of Brazil's largest ports which has been attracting significant investments in shipyards, oil refineries and petrochemical industries.
GRTU was pleased to notice he is a specialists in Trade Relations which is a strong point when working as a Consul from a Country outside the EU. Prof Castro sees Malta as a Geo-Political Focal Point. He mentioned that he visited the Free Port and noticed no South African lines were present and he said he would start work in this area in addition to establish direct a direct maritime connection.
