Brazilian, Sep 25 (IANS): There has been an increase in the approval rating of the Brazilian government led by President Jair Bolsonaro in September amid the coronavirus pandemic, said a survey released by the National Confederation of Industry (CNI).

Forty per cent of Brazilians perceived the government as good or excellent, which marks the highest percentage since it took office, Xinhua news agencu quoted the survey as saying on Thursday.

Approval for Bolsonaro's way of governing rose from 41 to 50 per cent, and trust in the President grew from 41 to 46 per cent.

The President's popularity was particularly high among those with less education and lower income.

According to Renato da Fonseca, CNI executive director of Economy, this increase in popularity could be linked to the government's distribution of emergency aid for low-income people amid the pandemic.

"Apparently, emergency aid played an important role in improving the evaluation of Jair Bolsonaro's government, as it reflects the increase in the approval of measures combatting hunger and poverty," he said.

In the survey, 51 per cent of declared that they had a positive perception of the government's performance in public security.

Areas like the fight against hunger and poverty, education, and health were also highly rated.

Brazil currently accounts for the third highest number of coronavirus cases in the world and the second highest number of fatalities.

As of Friday, the country's overall case tally increased to 4,657,702, while the death toll stood at 139,808.

The state of Sao Paolo is the worst-hit with over 930,000 cases and 34,677 deaths, followed by Bahia, Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and Ceara.