Peru Population: 29,849,303
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| Background | |
| Ancient Peru was the seat of several prominent Andean civilizations, most notably that of the Incas whose empire was captured by Spanish conquistadors in 1533. Peruvian independence was declared in 1821, and remaining Spanish forces were defeated in 1824. After a dozen years of military rule, Peru returned to democratic leadership in 1980, but experienced economic problems and the growth of a violent insurgency. President Alberto FUJIMORI's election in 1990 ushered in a decade that saw a dramatic turnaround in the economy and significant progress in curtailing guerrilla activity. Nevertheless, the president's increasing reliance on authoritarian measures and an economic slump in the late 1990s generated mounting dissatisfaction with his regime, which led to his ouster in 2000. A caretaker government oversaw new elections in the spring of 2001, which installed Alejandro TOLEDO Manrique as the new head of government - Peru's first democratically elected president of indigenous Quechuan ethnicity. The presidential election of 2006 saw the return of Alan GARCIA Perez who, after a disappointing presidential term from 1985 to 1990, oversaw a robust economic rebound. In June 2011, former army officer Ollanta HUMALA Tasso was elected president, defeating Keiko FUJIMORI Higuchi, the daughter of Alberto FUJIMORI. Since his election, HUMALA has carried on the sound, market-oriented economic policies of the three preceeding administrations. |
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| Geography | |
| Shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake, with Bolivia; a remote slope of Nevado Mismi, a 5,316 m peak, is the ultimate source of the Amazon River | |
| Location: | Western South America, bordering the South Pacific Ocean, between Chile and Ecuador |
| Geographic coordinates: | 10 00 S, 76 00 W |
| Area: | total: 1,285,216 sq km land: 1,279,996 sq km water: 5,220 sq km Size comparison: slightly smaller than Alaska |
| Land Boundaries: | total: 7,461 km border countries: Bolivia 1,075 km, Brazil 2,995 km, Chile 171 km, Colombia 1,800 km, Ecuador 1,420 km |
| Coastline: | 2,414 km |
| Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
| Climate: | varies from tropical in east to dry desert in west; temperate to frigid in Andes |
| Terrain: | western coastal plain (costa), high and rugged Andes in center (sierra), eastern lowland jungle of Amazon Basin (selva) |
| Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Nevado Huascaran 6,768 m |
| Natural resources: | copper, silver, gold, petroleum, timber, fish, iron ore, coal, phosphate, potash, hydropower, natural gas |
| Land use: | arable land: 2.88% permanent crops: 0.47% other: 96.65% (2005) |
| Irrigated land: | 11,950 sq km (2003) |
| Natural hazards: | earthquakes, tsunamis, flooding, landslides, mild volcanic activity volcanism: volcanic activity in the Andes Mountains; Ubinas (elev. 5,672 m), which last erupted in 2009, is the country's most active volcano; other historically active volcanoes include El Misti, Huaynaputina, Sabancaya, and Yucamane |
| Current Environment Issues: | deforestation (some the result of illegal logging); overgrazing of the slopes of the costa and sierra leading to soil erosion; desertification; air pollution in Lima; pollution of rivers and coastal waters from municipal and mining wastes |
| International Environment Agreements: | party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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| People | |
| Population: | 29,849,303 (July 2013 est.) |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 27.6% (male 4,197,698/female 4,053,852) 15-24 years: 19.4% (male 2,894,420/female 2,891,714) 25-54 years: 39.2% (male 5,633,249/female 6,056,017) 55-64 years: 7.1% (male 1,039,975/female 1,086,428) 65 years and over: 6.7% (male 947,349/female 1,048,601) (2013 est.) population pyramid: |
| Median age: | total: 26.5 years male: 25.8 years female: 27.2 years (2012 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 1.016% (2012 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 19.13 births/1,000 population (2012 est.) |
| Death rate: | 5.95 deaths/1,000 population (July 2012 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | -3.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2012 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2011 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 21.5 deaths/1,000 live births male: 23.78 deaths/1,000 live births female: 19.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2012 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 72.73 years male: 70.78 years female: 74.76 years (2012 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 2.25 children born/woman (2013 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | 0.4% (2009 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | 75,000 (2009 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | 5,000 (2009 est.) |
| Nationality: | noun: Peruvian(s) adjective: Peruvian |
| Ethnic groups: | Amerindian 45%, mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 37%, white 15%, black, Japanese, Chinese, and other 3% |
| Religions: | Roman Catholic 81.3%, Evangelical 12.5%, other 3.3%, unspecified or none 2.9% (2007 Census) |
| Languages: | Spanish (official) 84.1%, Quechua (official) 13%, Aymara (official) 1.7%, Ashaninka 0.3%, other native languages (includes a large number of minor Amazonian languages) 0.7%, other 0.2% (2007 Census) |
| Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 92.9% male: 96.4% female: 89.4% (2007 Census) |
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| Government | |
| Country name: | conventional long form: Republic of Peru conventional short form: Peru local long form: Republica del Peru local short form: Peru |
| Government type: | constitutional republic |
| Capital: | name: Lima geographic coordinates: 12 03 S, 77 03 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Administrative divisions: | 25 regions (regiones, singular - region) and 1 province* (provincia); Amazonas, Ancash, Apurimac, Arequipa, Ayacucho, Cajamarca, Callao, Cusco, Huancavelica, Huanuco, Ica, Junin, La Libertad, Lambayeque, Lima, Lima*, Loreto, Madre de Dios, Moquegua, Pasco, Piura, Puno, San Martin, Tacna, Tumbes, Ucayali |
| Independence: | 28 July 1821 (from Spain) |
| National holiday: | Independence Day, 28 July (1821) |
| Constitution: | 29 December 1993 |
| Legal system: | civil law system |
| Suffrage: | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory until the age of 70 |
| Executive branch: | chief of state: President Ollanta HUMALA Tasso (since 28 July 2011); First Vice President Marisol ESPINOZA Cruz (since 28 July 2011); Second Vice President (vacant); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Ollanta HUMALA Tasso (since 28 July 2011); First Vice President Marisol ESPINOZA Cruz (since 28 July 2011); Second Vice President (vacant) note: Prime Minister Juan Federico JIMENEZ Mayor (since 23 July 2012) does not exercise executive power; this power rests with the president cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president (For more information visit the World Leaders website ) elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for nonconsecutive reelection); presidential and congressional elections last held on 10 April 2011 with runoff election held on 6 June 2011 (next to be held in April 2016) election results: Ollanta HUMALA Tasso elected president in runoff election; percent of vote - Ollanta HUMALA Tasso 51.5%, Keiko FUJIMORI Higuchi 48.5% |
| Legislative branch: | unicameral Congress of the Republic of Peru or Congreso de la Republica del Peru (130 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held on 10 April 2011 (next to be held in April 2016) election results: percent of vote by party - Gana Peru 25.3%, Fuerza 2011 23%, PP 14.8%, Alliance for Great Change 14.4%, National Solidarity 10.2%, Peruvian Aprista Party 6.4%, other 5.9%; seats by party - Gana Peru 47, Fuerza 2011 37, PP 21, Alliance for Great Change 12, National Solidarity 9, Peruvian Aprista Party 4; note - defections by members of National Assembly are commonplace, resulting in frequent changes in the numbers of seats held by the various parties |
| Judicial branch: | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges are appointed by the National Council of the Judiciary) |
| Political parties and leaders: | Alliance for Great Change (Alianza por el Gran Cambio) (a coalition of the Alliance for Progress, Humanist Party, National Restoration Party, and Popular Christian Party) [Pedro Pablo KUCZYNSKI]; Fuerza 2011 [Keiko FUJIMORI]; Gana Peru (a coalition of Lima Para Todos, Peruvian Communist Party, Peruvian Nationalist Party, and Peruvian Socialist Party) [Ollanta HUMALA Tasso]; National Solidarity (Solidaridad Nacional) or SN (a coalition of Cambio 90, Siempre Unidos, Todos por el Peru, and Union for Peru or UPP) [Luis CASTANEDA Lossio]; Peru Posible or PP (a coalition of Accion Popular and Somos Peru) [Alejandro TOLEDO Manrique]; Peruvian Aprista Party (Partido Aprista Peruano) or PAP [Alan GARCIA Perez] (also referred to by its original name Alianza Popular Revolucionaria Americana or APRA) |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | General Workers Confederation of Peru (Confederacion General de Trabajadores del Peru) or CGTP [Mario HUAMAN]; Shining Path (Sendero Luminoso) or SL [Abimael GUZMAN Reynoso (imprisoned), Victor QUISPE Palomino (top leader at-large)] (leftist guerrilla group) |
| International organization participation: | APEC, BIS, CAN, CD, CELAC, EITI (compliant country), FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (NGOs), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, SICA (observer), UN, UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNISFA, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Harold Winston FORSYTH Mejia chancery: 1700 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 833-9860 through 9869 FAX: [1] (202) 659-8124 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Hartford (CT), Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Paterson (NJ), San Francisco |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Rose M. LIKINS embassy: Avenida La Encalada, Cuadra 17 s/n, Surco, Lima 33 mailing address: P. O. Box 1995, Lima 1; American Embassy (Lima), APO AA 34031-5000 telephone: [51] (1) 618-2000 FAX: [51] (1) 618-2397 |
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| Economy | |
| Peru's economy reflects its varied geography - an arid lowland coastal region, the central high sierra of the Andes, the dense forest of the Amazon, with tropical lands bordering Colombia and Brazil. A wide range of important mineral resources are found in the mountainous and coastal areas, and Peru's coastal waters provide excellent fishing grounds. The Peruvian economy has been growing by an average of 6.4% per year since 2002 with a stable/slightly appreciating exchange rate and low inflation, which in 2013 is expected to be below the Central Bank target of 3 percent. Growth has been in the 6-9% range for the last three years, due partly to a leap in private investment, especially in the extractive sector, which accounts for more than 60% of Peru's total exports. Despite Peru's strong macroeconomic performance, dependence on minerals and metals exports and imported foodstuffs subjects the economy to fluctuations in world prices. Poor infrastructure hinders the spread of growth to Peru's non-coastal areas. Peru's rapid expansion coupled with cash transfers and other programs have helped to reduce the national poverty rate by 23 percentage points since 2002, but inequality persists and continues to pose a challenge for the new Ollanta HUMALA administration, which has championed a policy of social inclusion and a more equitable distribution of income. Peru's free trade policy has continued under the HUMALA administration; since 2006, Peru has signed trade deals with the US, Canada, Singapore, China, Korea, Mexico, and Japan, concluded negotiations with the European Free Trade Association and Chile, and begun trade talks with Central American countries and others. Peru also has signed a trade pact with Chile, Colombia, and Mexico called the Pacific Alliance that rivals Mercosur in combined population, GDP, and trade. The US-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement entered into force 1 February 2009, opening the way to greater trade and investment between the two economies. Trade agreements with South Korea, Japan, and Mexico also were signed in 2011. Although Peru has continued to attract foreign investment, political disputes and protests may impede development of some projects related to natural resource extraction. | |
| GDP (purchasing power parity): | GDP (purchasing power parity): $325.4 billion (2012 est.) $306.9 billion (2011 est.) $287 billion (2010 est.) note: data are in 2012 US dollars |
| GDP (official exchange rate): | GDP (official exchange rate): $200.3 billion (2012 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate: | 6% (2012 est.) 6.9% (2011 est.) 8.8% (2010 est.) |
| GDP - per capita (PPP): | GDP - per capita (PPP): $10,700 (2012 est.) $10,200 (2011 est.) $9,700 (2010 est.) note: data are in 2012 US dollars |
| GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: 7.8% industry: 33.9% services: 58.4% (2012 est.) |
| Labor force: | 15.9 million note: individuals older than 14 years of age (2011 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture: 0.7% industry: 23.8% services: 75.5% (2005) |
| Unemployment rate: | 7.7% (2012 est.) 7.9% (2011 est.) note: data are for metropolitan Lima; widespread underemployment |
| Population below poverty line: | 31.3% (2010 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: 1.4% highest 10%: 36.1% (2010 est.) |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index: | 46 (2010) 51 (2005) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3.6% (2012 est.) 3.4% (2011 est.) note: data are for metropolitan Lima, annual average |
| Investment (gross fixed): | Investment (gross fixed): 25.4% of GDP (2012 est.) |
| Budget: | revenues: $58.15 billion expenditures: $56.42 billion (2012 est.) |
| Public debt: | 18.3% of GDP (2012 est.) 19.9% of GDP (2011 est.) note: data cover general government debt, and includes debt instruments issued by government entities other than the treasury; the data exclude treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data include debt issued by subnational entities |
| Agriculture - products: | asparagus, coffee, cocoa, cotton, sugarcane, rice, potatoes, corn, plantains, grapes, oranges, pineapples, guavas, bananas, apples, lemons, pears, coca, tomatoes, mangoes, barley, medicinal plants, palm oil, marigold, onion, wheat, dry beans; poultry, beef, pork, dairy products; guinea pigs; fish |
| Industries: | mining and refining of minerals; steel, metal fabrication; petroleum extraction and refining, natural gas and natural gas liquefaction; fishing and fish processing, cement, glass, textiles, clothing, food processing, beer, soft drinks, rubber, machinery, electrical machinery, chemicals, furniture |
| Industrial production growth rate: | 5% (2011 est.) |
| Electricity - production: | 38.7 billion kWh (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 60 |
| Electricity - consumption: | 34.25 billion kWh (2011 est.) |
| Electricity - exports: | 0 kWh (2011 est.) |
| Electricity - imports: | 6 million kWh (2011 est.) |
| Natural gas - production: | 31.12 billion cu m (2011) |
| Natural gas - consumption: | 5.41 billion cu m (2010 est.) |
| Natural gas - exports: | 3.59 billion cu m (2010 est.) |
| Natural gas - imports: | 0 cu m (2011) |
| Natural gas - proved reserves: | 352.8 billion cu m (1 January 2012 est.) |
| Current account balance: | -$4.856 billion (2012 est.) -$2.267 billion (2011 est.) |
| Exports: | $47.38 billion (2012 est.) $46.27 billion (2011 est.) |
| Exports - commodities: | copper, gold, lead, zinc, tin, iron ore, molybdenum, silver; crude petroleum and petroleum products, natural gas; coffee, asparagus and other vegetables, fruit, apparel and textiles, fishmeal, fish, chemicals, fabricated metal products and machinery, alloys |
| Exports - partners: | China 18.3%, US 15.2%, Canada 11.4%, Japan 5.4%, Spain 5.3%, Chile 4.8%, South Korea 4.6%, Germany 4.1% (2011) |
| Imports: | $41.15 billion (2012 est.) $36.97 billion (2011 est.) |
| Imports - commodities: | petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, plastics, machinery, vehicles, color TV sets, power shovels, front-end loaders, telephones and telecommunication equipment, iron and steel, wheat, corn, soybean products, paper, cotton, vaccines and medicines |
| Imports - partners: | US 24.5%, China 13.7%, Brazil 6.7%, Chile 5.9%, Ecuador 4.4%, South Korea 4% (2011) |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: | $61.3 billion (31 December 2012 est.) $48.93 billion (31 December 2011 est.) |
| Debt - external: | $38.91 billion (31 December 2012 est.) $37.39 billion (31 December 2011 est.) note: public debt component of total: $20.6 billion (31 December 2009) |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - at home: | $59.49 billion (31 December 2012 est.) $49.8 billion (31 December 2011 est.) |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad: | $3.597 billion (31 December 2012 est.) $3.432 billion (31 December 2011 est.) |
| Market value of publicly traded shares: | $121.6 billion (31 December 2011) $160.9 billion (31 December 2010) $107.3 billion (31 December 2009) |
| Exchange rates: | nuevo sol (PEN) per US dollar - 2.65 (2012 est.) 2.7541 (2011 est.) 2.8251 (2010 est.) 3.0115 (2009) 2.91 (2008) |
| Fiscal year: | calendar year |
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| Communications | |
| Telephones in use: | 3.688 million (2011) country comparison to the world: 43 |
| Cellular Phones in use: | 32.461 million (2011) |
| Telephone system: | general assessment: adequate for most requirements; nationwide microwave radio relay system and a domestic satellite system with 12 earth stations domestic: fixed-line teledensity is only about 12 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular teledensity, spurred by competition among multiple providers, exceeds 100 telephones per 100 persons international: country code - 51; the South America-1 (SAM-1) and Pan American (PAN-AM) submarine cable systems provide links to parts of Central and South America, the Caribbean, and US; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2010) |
| Radio broadcast stations: | |
| Television broadcast stations: | |
| Internet country code: | .pe |
| Internet hosts: | 234,102 (2012) |
| Internet users: | 9.158 million (2009) |
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| Transportation | |
| Airports: | 191 (2012) country comparison to the world: 32 |
| Airports (paved runways): | total: 58 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 4 (2012) |
| Airports (unpaved runways): | total: 133 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 19 914 to 1,523 m: 30 under 914 m: 83 (2012) |
| Heliports: | 4 (2012) |
| Pipelines: | extra heavy crude 533 km; gas 1,526 km; liquid petroleum gas 679 km; oil 1,033 km; refined products 15 km (2010) |
| Railways: | total: 1,906 km standard gauge: 1,772 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 134 km 0.914-m gauge (2010) |
| Roadways: | total: 137,327 km note: includes 26,017 km of national roads, 28,843 km of departmental roads, and 82,467 km of local roads (2007) |
| Waterways: | 8,808 km (there are 8,600 km of navigable tributaries on the Amazon system and 208 km on Lago Titicaca) (2011) |
| Merchant marine: | total: 22 by type: cargo 2, chemical tanker 5, liquefied gas 2, petroleum tanker 13 foreign-owned: 8 (Chile 6, Ecuador 1, Spain 1) registered in other countries: 9 (Panama 9) (2010) |
| Ports and terminals: | Callao, Iquitos, Matarani, Paita, Pucallpa, Yurimaguas; note - Iquitos, Pucallpa, and Yurimaguas are on the upper reaches of the Amazon and its tributaries oil terminals: Conchan oil terminal, La Pampilla oil terminal |
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| Military | |
| Military branches: | Peruvian Army (Ejercito Peruano), Peruvian Navy (Marina de Guerra del Peru, MGP (includes naval air, naval infantry, and Coast Guard)), Air Force of Peru (Fuerza Aerea del Peru, FAP) (2011) |
| Military service age and obligation: | 18-50 years of age for male and 18-45 years of age for female voluntary military service; no conscription (2012) |
| Manpower available for military service: | males age 16-49: 7,385,588 females age 16-49: 7,727,623 (2010 est.) |
| Manpower fit for military service: | males age 16-49: 5,788,629 females age 16-49: 6,565,097 (2010 est.) |
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