RIO DE JANEIRO - Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said Monday that her administration would tackle extreme poverty with determination.

In her weekly radio address, the president commented on a mega welfare scheme called Brazil without Poverty, launched recently to lift millions of people out of extreme poverty by the year 2014.

According to the 2010 Census, 16.2 million people, or 8.5 percent of the country's population, are classified in extreme poverty, defined as having an income of 70 reais (US$ 44.3) or less a month.

The president praised the efforts taken by her predecessor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to reduce poverty, but stressed that there was still much to be done.

Instead of having the poor asking for aid, the government will make an active study to satisfy their needs, the president said.

According to the scheme, technical assistance will also be provided to help them find better jobs in addition to the cash transference.