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BRASILIA (Reuters) – Brazilian Finance Minister Fernando Haddad was diagnosed with COVID-19 after feeling unwell on Sunday night and attending in person at G20-themed financial events scheduled for this week in Sao Paulo could be compromised.
The Finance Ministry said on Monday that Haddad would practically chair the meetings on February 28 and 29, while the tests were carried out. If the result is negative, he will be allowed to attend the meetings in person, he added.
In addition to attending G20 events from Brazil’s presidency of the organization of the world’s largest economies, Haddad was scheduled for bilateral meetings and other engagements.
An encounter with the International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva on Monday is now set to be held virtually, the ministry said, as well as his gathering with the IMF’s executive director in Brazil.
Haddad was also scheduled to meet with Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov and U. S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Tuesday. The ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether those meetings would also be held virtually.
Some 450 delegates representing G20 members, nine invited countries and 17 foreign organizations are expected to arrive in Sao Paulo through Thursday, according to Brazil’s Finance Ministry.
Official meetings kick off on Monday with a gathering of finance and central bank deputies, extending through Tuesday.
On Wednesday and Thursday, the first meetings of finance ministers and central bank governors will take a position on the Brazilian presidency.
The South American country intends to address issues such as the fight against inequality, progressive foreign taxation, national debts and financing for sustainable development.
(Reporting via Marcela Ayres; editing via Gabriel Araujo, Bernadette Baum, Kirsten Donovan, William Maclean)
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