AKIPRESS.COM - Right-wing nationalist Jair Bolsonaro has been congratulated by Donald Trump after being sworn in as president of Brazil, Sky News reports.

The former army captain - whose rise to prominence has been marked by divisive rhetoric and derogatory remarks about women, gay people and ethnic minorities - was inaugurated in the capital Brasilia on New Year's Day.

He has promised a crackdown on corruption, drugs and violent crime that saw 63,000 people killed in Brazil last year, as well as close alignment with the US and business-friendly economic policies.

The 63-year-old - who has been dubbed the "Trump of the Tropics" because of his views - said in his address that his country had been "liberated from socialism and political correctness" now that he had taken power.

He told Brazil's 210 million people that "we have a great nation to rebuild" and promised that he had put together a talented team of ministers to do just that.