Peru

Peru 

 
Geography                 Economy                 Defense Forces
 

People                    Transportation          Government



Communications            History      	          Travel

GEOGRAPHY

Location

Western South America, bordering the South Pacific Ocean, between Chile and Ecuador

Area

Land Boundaries

Total 6,940 km, Bolivia 900 km, Brazil 1,560 km, Chile 160 km, Colombia 2,900 km, Ecuador 1,420 km

Coastline

2,414 km

Maritime Claims

International Disputes

Three sections of the boundary with Ecuador are in dispute

Climate

Varies from tropical in east to dry desert in west

Terrain

Western coastal plain (costa), high and rugged Andes in center (sierra), eastern lowland jungle of Amazon Basin (selva)
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Nevado Huascaran 6,768 m

Natural Resources

Land Use

Irrigated Land

12,500 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment

Note: Shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake, with Bolivia

PEOPLE

Population

24,523,408 (July 1996 est.)
24,087,372 (July 1995 est.)

Age Structure

0-14 Years

35% (male 4,360,379; female 4,214,970) (July 1996 est.)
35% (male 4,296,293; female 4,152,520) (July 1995 est.)

15-64 Years

61% (male 7,480,747; female 7,375,825) (July 1996 est.)
61% (male 7,378,227; female 7,280,287) (July 1995 est.)

65 Years and Over

4% (male 497,775; female 593,712) (July 1996 est.)
4% (male 444,889; female 535,156) (July 1995 est.)

Population Growth Rate

1.74% (1996 est.)
1.8% (1995 est.)

Birth Rate

24.33 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
24.88 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death Rate

6.13 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
6.84 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net Migration Rate

-0.76 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female
all ages: 1.01 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant Mortality Rate

52.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
52.1 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life Expectancy at Birth

Total Fertility Rate

3.04 children born/woman (1996 est.)
3 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality

Ethnic Divisions

Religions

Languages

Spanish (official), Quechua (official), Aymara

Literacy

Age 15 and over that can read and write (1995 est.)

Labor Force

8 million (1992)

By occupation:

GOVERNMENT

Names

Digraph

PE

Type

Republic

Capital

Lima

Administrative Divisions

24 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 1 constitutional province* (provincia constitucional); Amazonas, Ancash, Apurimac, Arequipa, Ayacucho, Cajamarca, Callao*, Cusco, Huancavelica, Huanuco, Ica, Junin, La Libertad, Lambayeque, Lima, Loreto, Madre de Dios, Moquegua, Pasco, Piura, Puno, San Martin, Tacna, Tumbes, Ucayali

Note: The 1979 Constitution mandated the creation of regions (regiones, singular - region) to function eventually as autonomous economic and administrative entities; so far, 12 regions have been constituted from 23 of the 24 departments - Amazonas (from Loreto), Andres Avelino Caceres (from Huanuco, Pasco, Junin), Arequipa (from Arequipa), Chavin (from Ancash), Grau (from Tumbes, Piura), Inca (from Cusco, Madre de Dios, Apurimac), La Libertad (from La Libertad), Los Libertadores-Huari (from Ica, Ayacucho, Huancavelica), Mariategui (from Moquegua, Tacna, Puno), Nor Oriental del Maranon (from Lambayeque, Cajamarca, Amazonas), San Martin (from San Martin), Ucayali (from Ucayali); formation of another region has been delayed by the reluctance of the constitutional province of Callao to merge with the department of Lima; because of inadequate funding from the central government and organizational and political difficulties, the regions have yet to assume major responsibilities; the 1993 Constitution retains the regions but limits their authority; the 1993 Constitution also reaffirms the roles of departmental and municipal governments.

Independence

28 July 1821 (from Spain)

National Holiday

Independence Day, 28 July (1821)

Constitution

31 December 1993

Legal System

Based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive Branch

Note: Prime Minister Alberto PANDOLFI Arbulu (since 3 April 1996) does not exercise executive power; this power is in the hands of the president

Legislative Branch

Unicameral

Congress

Elections last held 9 April 1995 (next to be held NA 2000); results - C90/NM 52.1% of the total vote, UPP 14%, eleven other parties 33.9%; seats - (120 total, when installed on 28 July 1995) C90/NM 67, UPP 17, APRA 8, FIM 6, (CODE)-Pais Posible 5, AP 4, PPC 3, Renovacion 3, IU 2, OBRAS 2, MIA 1, FRENATRACA 1, (FREPAP) 1

Judicial Branch

Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justicia)

Political Parties and Leaders

Change 90-New Majority (C90/NM), Alberto FUJIMORI; Union for Peru (UPP), Javier PEREZ de CUELLAR; American Popular Revolutionary Alliance (APRA), Agustin MANTILLA Campos; Independent Moralizing Front (FIM), Fernando OLIVERA Vega; Democratic Coordinator (CODE) - Pais Posible, Jose BARBA Caballero and Alejandro TOLEDO; Popular Action Party (AP), Raul DIEZ CANSECO; Popular Christian Party (PPC), Luis BEDOYA Reyes; Renovacion, Rafael REY Rey; Civic Works Movement (OBRAS), Ricardo BELMONT; United Left (IU), Agustin HAYA de la TORRE; Independent Agrarian Movement (MIA), Rolando SALVATERRIE; Peru 2000-National Front of Workers and Peasants (FRENATRACA), Roger CACARES; Popular Agricultural Front (FREPAP), Ezequiel ATAUCUSI

Other Political or Pressure Groups

Leftist guerrilla groups include Shining Path, Abimael GUZMAN Reynoso (imprisoned); Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement, Nestor SERPA and Victor POLAY (imprisoned)

Member of

AG, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

National Anthem

Flag

Three equal, vertical bands of red (hoist side), white, and red with the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms features a shield bearing a llama, cinchona tree (the source of quinine), and a yellow cornucopia spilling out gold coins, all framed by a green wreath

ECONOMY

Overview

The Peruvian economy has become increasingly market-oriented, with major privatizations completed since 1990 in the mining, electricity, and telecommunications industries. In the 1980s, the economy suffered from hyperinflation, declining per capita output, and mounting external debt. Peru was shut off from IMF and World Bank support in the mid-1980s because of its huge debt arrears. An austerity program implemented shortly after the FUJIMORI government took office in July 1990 contributed to a third consecutive yearly contraction of economic activity, but the slide came to a halt late that year, and in 1991 output rose 2.4%. After a burst of inflation as the austerity program eliminated government price subsidies, monthly price increases eased to the single-digit level and by December 1991 dropped to the lowest increase since mid-1987. Lima obtained a financial rescue package from multilateral lenders in September 1991, although it faced $14 billion in arrears on its external debt. By working with the IMF and World Bank on new financial conditions and arrangements, the government succeeded in ending its arrears by March 1993. In 1992, GDP fell by 2.8%, in part because a warmer-than-usual El Nino current resulted in a 30% drop in the fish catch, but the economy rebounded as strong foreign investment helped push growth to 6% in 1993, about 13% in 1994, and 6.8% in 1995.

National Product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $87 billion (1995 est.); $73.6 billion (1994 est.)

National Product Real Growth Rate

6.8% (1995 est.)
8.6% (1994 est.)

National Product Per Capita

$3,600 (1995 est.)
$3,110 (1994 est.)

Inflation Rate (consumer Prices)

10.2% (1995 est.)
15% (1994 est.)

Unemployment Rate

15%; extensive underemployment (1992 est.)

Budget

Exports

$5.6 billion (f.o.b., 1995 est.)
$4.1 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)

Commodities:

Partners:

Imports

$7.4 billion (f.o.b., 1995 est.)
$5.1 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)

Commodities:

Partners:

External Debt

$22.4 billion (1994 est.)

Industrial Production

NA

Electricity

Industries

Agriculture

Accounts for 12% of GDP, about 35% of labor force; commercial crops - coffee, cotton, sugarcane; other crops - rice, wheat, potatoes, plantains, coca; animal products - poultry, red meats, dairy, wool; not self-sufficient in grain or vegetable oil; fish catch of 6.9 million metric tons (1990)

Illicit Drugs

World's largest coca leaf producer with about 108,600 hectares under cultivation in 1994; source of supply for most of the world's coca paste and cocaine base; at least 85% of coca cultivation is for illicit production; most of cocaine base is shipped to Colombian drug dealers for processing into cocaine for the international drug market, but exports of finished cocaine are increasing

Economic Aid

Currency

1 nuevo sol (S/.) = 100 centimos

Exchange Rates

Nuevo sol (S/.) per US$1 - 2.350 (January 1996), 2.253 (1995), 2.195 (1994), 1.988 (1993), 1.246 (1992), 0.773 (1991), 0.187 (1990)

Fiscal Year

Calendar year

TRANSPORTATION

Railroads

Highways

Inland Waterways

8,600 km of navigable tributaries of Amazon system and 208 km of Lago Titicaca

Pipelines

Crude oil 800 km; natural gas and natural gas liquids 64 km

Ports

Callao, Chimbote, Ilo, Iquitos, Matarani, Paita, Pucallpa, Salaverry, San Martin, Talara, Yurimaguas

Note: Iquitos, Pucallpa, and Yurimaguas are all on the upper reaches of the Amazon and its tributaries

Merchant Marine

Airports

COMMUNICATIONS

Telephone System

779,306 telephones (1990 est.); fairly adequate for most requirements

Radio

Television

DEFENSE FORCES

Branches

Army (Ejercito Peruano), Navy (Marina de Guerra del Peru), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea del Peru), National Police

Manpower Availability

Males age 15-49 6,441,460; males fit for military service 4,347,460; males reach military age (20) annually 255,067 (1996 est.)

Defense Expenditures

Exchange rate conversion - $998 million, 1.6% of GDP (1996); $810 million, about 2.7% of GDP (1994)

History
World Atlas

Last modified: 24 december 1997