New Delhi, Feb. 25 -- Oiapoque is a sleepy town on the edge of the Amazon basin in Brazil's northernmost tip. On weekdays fishermen haul their catch to the local market and indigenous people stream in from the rainforest to sell ground manioc and buy fuel. At the weekend, tourists from neighbouring French Guiana cross the border to buy cheap food and flirt with locals. But it is not hard to see that a transformation is afoot. Hotels are popping up along the main drag. One that is set to open next year will boast seven floors, practically a skyscraper in the impoverished region. A tiny airport on the outskirts of town has been recently renovated. The whir of helicopter blades is becoming more common.

Long a backwater, Oiapoque is preparin...