Guaraciama is aBrazilianmunicipality located in the north of thestate ofMinas Gerais. Its population as of 2020[update] was 4,989 people living in a total area of 392 km2.[1] The city belongs to themesoregion ofNorth of Minas and to themicroregion ofBocaiúva. It became a municipality in 1997.[2]
Guaraciama is located at an elevation of 795 meters in the valley of the Rio Verde Grande, a tributary of theSão Francisco River. It is southwest of the regional centerMontes Claros. The distance toBocaiúva is 18 km; the distance toMontes Claros is 44 km; and the distance toBelo Horizonte is 399 km. It is surrounded by the municipality ofBocaiúva on three sides. Neighboring municipalities are:Montes Claros (N) ;Bocaiúva(E) (W) (S).[3]
The main economic activities are cattle raising, services, and agriculture. The GDP in 2005 was R$13 million, with 8 million from services, 1 million from industry, and 3 million from agriculture. There were 330 rural producers on 7,300 hectares of land. Only 08 farms had tractors. The main crops were mangoes, sugarcane, beans, and corn. There were 7,000 head of cattle (2006).[2]
Guaraciama suffers from periodic drought and poor highway communications. Its social indicators rank it in the bottom tier of municipalities in the state.
The highest ranking municipality in Minas Gerais in 2000 wasPoços de Caldas with 0.841, while the lowest wasSetubinha with 0.568. Nationally the highest wasSão Caetano do Sul in São Paulo with 0.919, while the lowest was Setubinha. In more recent statistics (considering 5,507 municipalities)Manari in the state ofPernambuco has the lowest rating in the country—0,467—putting it in last place.[4]
17°00′50″S43°40′22″W / 17.01389°S 43.67278°W /-17.01389; -43.67278