Map of Peru | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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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 resignation in 2000. A caretaker government oversaw a new election in the spring of 2001 which installed Alejandro TOLEDO Manrique as the new head of government - Peru's first democratically elected president of indigenous 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; he has carried on the sound market-oriented economic policies of the three preceding administrations.


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Location: Western South America bordering the South Pacific Ocean between Chile and Ecuador

Geographic coordinates: 10 00 S 76 00 W

Map reference: South America

Area
Total: 1,285,216 km²
Land: 1,279,996 km²
Water: 5,220 km²
Rank: 20
Comparative: almost twice the size of Texas; slightly smaller than Alaska

Land boundaries
Total: 7,062 km
Border countries: (5) Bolivia 1212 km; Brazil 2,659 km; Chile 168 km; Colombia 1494 km; Ecuador 1529 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
Extremes 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
Agricultural land: 18.8%
Forest: 53%
Other: 28.2%

Irrigated land: 11,960 km² (2003)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources: 1913 km³ (2011)

Natural hazards: earthquakes tsunamis flooding landslides mild volcanic activity
Volcanism: volcanic activity in the Andes Mountains; Ubinas which last erupted in 2009 is the country's most active volcano; other historically active volcanoes include El Misti Huaynaputina Sabancaya and Yucamane

Geography
Note: 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


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Population: 30,444,999 (July 2015 est.)
Rank: 43
Growth rate: 0.97% (2015 est.)
Growth rate rank: 120
Below poverty line: 25.8% (2012 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Peruvian
Adjective: Peruvian

Ethnic groups: Amerindian 45% mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 37% white 15% black Japanese Chinese and other 3%

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 (includes foreign languages and sign language) 0.2% (2007 est.)

Religions: Roman Catholic 81.3% Evangelical 12.5% other 3.3% none 2.9% (2007 est.)

Demographic profile:

Age structure
0-14 years: 26.95%
15-24 years: 18.93%
25-54 years: 39.65%
55-64 years: 7.45%
65 years and over: 7.03% (2015 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 53.2%
Youth dependency ratio: 42.7%
Elderly dependency ratio: 10.5%
Potential support ratio: 9.6%

Median age
Total: 27.3 years
Male: 26.6 years
Female: 28.1 years

Population growth rate: 0.97% (2015 est.)
Rank: 120

Birth rate: 18.28 births/1000 population (2015 est.)
Rank: 100

Death rate: 6.01 deaths/1000 population (2015 est.)
Rank: 164

Net migration rate: -2.53 migrant(s)/1000 population (2015 est.)
Rank: 174

Population distribution

Urbanization
Urban population: 78.6% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 1.69% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: LIMA (capital) 9.897 million; Arequipa 850,000; Trujillo 798,000 (2015)

Environment
Current 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 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
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male/female
0-14 years: 1.04 male/female
15-24 years: 1 male/female
25-54 years: 0.93 male/female
55-64 years: 0.95 male/female
65 years and over: 0.9 male/female
Total population: 0.97 male/female

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 19.59 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 21.79 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 17.29 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 89

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 73.48 years
Male: 71.45 years
Female: 75.6 years
Rank: 130

Total fertility rate: 2.18 children born/woman (2015 est.)
Rank: 99

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 75.5% (2012)

Drinking water source:

Current health expenditure

Physicians density: 1.13 physicians/1000 population (2012)

Hospital bed density: 1.5 beds/1000 population (2012)

Sanitation facility access:

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.36% (2014 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 77
People living with hivaids: 71,900 (2014 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 51
Deaths: 2,500 (2014 est.)
Deaths rank: 51

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: very high
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea hepatitis A and typhoid fever
Vectorborne disease: dengue fever malaria and Bartonellosis (2013)

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 20.4% (2014)
Rank: 117

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 3.5% (2012)
Rank: 103

Education expenditures: 3.3% of GDP (2013)
Rank: 145

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 94.5%
Male: 97.3%
Female: 91.7%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 13 years
Male: 13 years
Female: 13 years

Youth unemployment


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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

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
Note: Callao the largest port in Peru is also referred to as a constitutional province the only province of the the Callao region

Dependent areas

Independence: 28 July 1821 (from Spain)

National holiday: Independence Day 28 July (1821)

Constitution: several previous; latest promulgated 29 December 1993 enacted 31 December 1993; amended several times last in 2009 (2009)

Legal system: civil law system

International law organization participation: accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory until the age of 70

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Ollanta HUMALA Tasso ; First Vice President Marisol ESPINOZA Cruz (since 28 July 2011); Second Vice President (vacant); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
Head of government: President Ollanta HUMALA Tasso ; First Vice President Marisol ESPINOZA Cruz (since 28 July 2011); Second Vice President (vacant)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
Electionsappointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term ; election last held on 10 April 2011 with runoff on 6 June 2011 (next to be held in April 2016)
Election results: Ollanta HUMALA Tasso elected president; percent of vote - Ollanta HUMALA Tasso 51.5% Keiko FUJIMORI Higuchi (Fuerza Popular) 48.5%
Note: Prime Minister Pedro CATERIANO Bellido does not exercise executive power; this power rests with the president; note - Prime Minister Ana JARA was removed from office by Congress in a vote of no confidence on 30 March 2015

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral Congress of the Republic of Peru or Congreso de la Republica del Peru
Elections: last held on 10 April 2011 with run-off election on 6 June 2011
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; seats by bloc party as of 10 March 2014 - Gana Peru 43 Fuerza Popular 36 PP 10 Accion Popular-Frente Amplio 10 National Solidarity 9 Union Regional 8 Partido Popular Cristiano-Alianza Para el Progreso 7 Concertacion Parlamentaria 6 Independent 1; note - defections by members of the National Assembly are commonplace resulting in the formation of new blocs and frequent changes in the numbers of seats held by the various blocs

Judicial branch
Highest court: Supreme Court
Judge selection and term of office: justices proposed by the National Council of the Judiciary or National Judicial Council nominated by the president and confirmed by the Congress (all appointments reviewed by the Council every 7 years); justices appointed for life or until age 70
Subordinate courts: Court of Constitutional Guarantees; Superior Courts or Cortes Superiores; specialized civil criminal and mixed courts; 2 types of peace courts in which professional judges and selected members of the local communities preside

Political parties and leaders:

International organization participation: APEC BIS CAN CD CELAC EITI (compliant country) FAO G-24 G-77 IADB IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC (NGOs) ICCt ICRM IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS IHO ILO IMF IMO IMSO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ISO ITSO ITU ITUC (NGOs) LAES LAIA Mercosur (associate) MIGA MINUSTAH MONUSCO NAM OAS OPANAL OPCW Pacific Alliance PCA SICA (observer) UN UNAMID UNASUR UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO Union Latina UNISFA UNMISS UNOCI UNWTO UPU WCO WFTU (NGOs) WHO WIPO WMO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Luis Miguel CASTILLA Rubio
In the us chancery: 1700 Massachusetts Avenue NW Washington DC 20,036
In the us telephone: [1] 833-9,860 through 9,869
In the us FAX: [1] 659-8,124
In the us consulate general: Atlanta Boston Chicago Dallas Denver Hartford Houston Los Angeles Miami New York Paterson (NJ) San Francisco Washington DC
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Brian A. NICHOLS
From the us embassy: Avenida La Encalada Cuadra 17 s/n Surco Lima 33
From the us mailing address: P. O. Box 1995 Lima 1; American Embassy APO AA 34,031-5,000
From the us telephone: [51] 618-2000
From the us FAX: [51] 618-2,397

Flag description: 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 vicuna (representing fauna) a cinchona tree (the source of quinine signifying flora) and a yellow cornucopia spilling out coins (denoting mineral wealth); red recalls blood shed for independence white symbolizes peace

National symbols: vicuna (a camelid related to the llama); national colors: red white

National anthem
Name: 'Himno Nacional del Peru'
Lyrics and music: Jose DE LA TORRE Ugarte/Jose Bernardo ALZEDO
Note: adopted 1822; the song won a national anthem contest

National heritage


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Economy overview: Peru's economy reflects its varied topography - 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. Peru is the world's second largest producer of silver and third largest producer of copper. The Peruvian economy grew by an average of 5.6% from 2009-13 with a stable exchange rate and low inflation which in 2013 was just below the upper limit of the Central Bank target range of 1 to 3%. This growth was due partly to high international prices for Peru's metals and minerals exports which account for almost 60% of the country's total exports. Growth slipped in 2014 due to weaker world prices for these resources. Despite Peru's strong macroeconomic performance dependence on minerals and metals exports and imported foodstuffs makes the economy vulnerable to fluctuations in world prices. Peru's rapid expansion coupled with cash transfers and other programs have helped to reduce the national poverty rate by 28 percentage points since 2002 but inequality persists and continues to pose a challenge for the Ollanta HUMALA administration which has championed a policy of social inclusion and a more equitable distribution of income. Poor infrastructure hinders the spread of growth to Peru's non-coastal areas. The HUMALA administration passed several economic stimulus packages in 2014 to bolster growth including reforms to environmental regulations in order to spur investment in Peru’s lucrative mining sector a move that was opposed by some environmental groups. 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 Japan the EU the European Free Trade Association Chile Thailand Costa Rica Panama Venezuela concluded negotiations with Guatemala and begun trade talks with Honduras El Salvador India Indonesia Turkey and the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Peru also has signed a trade pact with Chile Colombia and Mexico called the Pacific Alliance that seeks integration of services capital investment and movement of people. Since the US-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement entered into force in February 2009 total trade between Peru and the United States has doubled.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Note: data are in 2014 US dollars
Rank: 48

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 80

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2014 US dollars
Rank: 119

Gross national saving:
Rank: 58

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 64%
Government consumption: 11.2%
Investment in fixed capital: 26.2%
Investment in inventories: 0.2%
Exports of goods and services: 21.8%
Imports of goods and services: -23.5%: (2014 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 7.1%
Industry: 36.7%
Services: 56.2%

Agriculture products: artichokes asparagus avocados blueberries coffee cocoa cotton sugarcane rice potatoes corn plantains grapes oranges pineapples guavas bananas apples lemons pears coca tomatoes mangoes barley medicinal plants quinoa 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: 4.2% (2014 est.)
Rank: 68

Labor force: 16.55 million
Note: individuals older than 14 years of age
Rank: 38
By occupation agriculture: 25.8%
By occupation industry: 17.4%
By occupation services: 56.8%

Unemployment rate:
Note: data are for metropolitan Lima; widespread underemployment
Rank: 84

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 25.8% (2012 est.)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 1.4%
Highest 10: 36.1%

Distribution of family income gini index:
Rank: 39

Budget
Revenues: $64.25 billion
Expenditures: $64.49 billion
Surplus or deficit: -0.1% of GDP (2014 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 43

Taxes and other revenues: 30.9% of GDP (2014 est.)
Rank: 85

Public debt:
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
Rank: 145

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:
Note: data are for metropolitan Lima annual average
Rank: 140

Central bank discount rate:
Rank: 73

Commercial bank prime lending rate:
Note: domestic currency lending rate 90 day maturity
Rank: 32

Stock of narrow money:
Rank: 59

Stock of broad money:
Rank: 57

Stock of domestic credit:
Rank: 62

Market value of publicly traded shares:
Rank: 38

Current account balance:
Rank: 180

Exports:
Rank: 63
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
Partners: China 18.3% US 16.1% Switzerland 6.9% Canada 6.6% Brazil 4.2% Japan 4.1% (2014)

Imports:
Rank: 61
Commodities: petroleum and petroleum products chemicals plastics machinery vehicles TV sets power shovels front-end loaders telephones and telecommunication equipment iron and steel wheat corn soybean products paper cotton vaccines and medicines
Partners: China 21% US 21% Brazil 4.7% Mexico 4.6% Ecuador 4.2% (2014)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Rank: 36

Debt external:
Rank: 60

Stock of direct foreign investment at home:
Rank: 49

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad:
Rank: 67

Exchange rates:


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Electricity
Production: 38.4 billion kWh (2012 est.)
Production rank: 60
Consumption: 35.71 billion kWh (2011 est.)
Consumption rank: 58
Exports: 2 million kWh (2012 est.)
Exports rank: 96
Imports: 0 kWh (2012 est.)
Imports rank: 187
Installed generating capacity: 8.557 million kW (2011 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 61
Generation sources fossil fuels: 59.6% of total installed capacity (2011 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 137
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2011 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 161
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 40.4% of total installed capacity (2011 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 57
Generation sources other renewable sources: 0% of total installed capacity (2011 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 114

Coal

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 170,500 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 40
Crude oil exports: 15,610 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 56
Crude oil imports: 99,590 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 49
Crude oil proven reserves: 632.9 million bbl (1 January 2014 est.)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 46

Crude oil

Refined petroleum
Products production: 159,500 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Products production rank: 62
Products consumption: 171,400 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Products consumption rank: 61
Products exports: 82,080 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Products exports rank: 49
Products imports: 43,480 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Products imports rank: 76

Natural gas
Production: 32.4 billion m³ (2012)
Production rank: 28
Consumption: 11.85 billion m³ (2012 est.)
Consumption rank: 44
Exports: 8.73 billion m³ (2012 est.)
Exports rank: 23
Imports: 0 m³ (2012 est.)
Imports rank: 116
Proven reserves: 435.4 billion m³ (1 January 2014 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 33

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 53.58 million Mt (2012 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 58

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 3.03 million
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 10
Fixed lines rank: 48
Mobile cellular total: 31.7 million
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 105
Mobile cellular rank: 38

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 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)

Broadcast media: 10 major TV networks of which only one Television Nacional de Peru is state owned; multi-channel cable TV services are available; in excess of 2000 radio stations including a substantial number of indigenous language stations (2010)

Internet
Country code: .pe
Users total: 12.3 million
Users percent of population: 40.9%
Users rank: 39

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures:
Rank: 78

Military and security forces

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)

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 191 (2013)
Rank: 30
With paved runways total: 59
With paved runways over 3047 m: 5
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 21
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 16
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 12
With paved runways under 914 m: 5
With unpaved runways total: 132
With unpaved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 19
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 30
With unpaved runways: 82 (2013)

Heliports: 5 (2013)

Pipelines: extra heavy crude 786 km; gas 1526 km; liquid petroleum gas 679 km; oil 1033 km; refined products 15 km (2013)

Railways
Total: 1854.4 km
Standard gauge: 1730.4 km 1.435-m gauge
Narrow gauge: 124 km 0.914-m gauge
Rank: 74

Roadways
Total: 140,672 km
Note: includes 24,593 km of national roads 24,235 km of departmental roads (2,340 km paved) and 91,844 km of local roads (1611 km paved) (2012)
Rank: 35

Waterways: 8,808 km (8,600 km of navigable tributaries on the Amazon system and 208 km on Lago Titicaca) (2011)
Rank: 14

Merchant marine
Total: 22
By type: cargo 2 chemical tanker 5 liquefied gas 2 petroleum tanker 13
Foreign owned: 8
Registered in other countries: 9 (2010)
Rank: 92

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Callao Matarani Paita
River port: Iquitos Pucallpa Yurimaguas
Oil terminals: Conchan oil terminal La Pampilla oil terminal
Container port: Callao (1,616,365)


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Disputes international: Chile and Ecuador rejected Peru's November 2005 unilateral legislation to shift the axis of their joint treaty-defined maritime boundaries along the parallels of latitude to equidistance lines which favor Peru; organized illegal narcotics operations in Colombia have penetrated Peru's shared border; Peru rejects Bolivia's claim to restore maritime access through a sovereign corridor through Chile along the Peruvian border

Refugees and internally displaced persons
IDPs: at least 150,000 (2014)

Illicit drugs: until 1996 the world's largest coca leaf producer Peru is now the world's second largest producer of coca leaf though it lags far behind Colombia; cultivation of coca in Peru was estimated at 40,000 hectares in 2009 a slight decrease over 2008; second largest producer of cocaine estimated at 225 metric tons of potential pure cocaine in 2009; finished cocaine is shipped out from Pacific ports to the international drug market; increasing amounts of base and finished cocaine however are being moved to Brazil Chile Argentina and Bolivia for use in the Southern Cone or transshipment to Europe and Africa; increasing domestic drug consumption