Pacific Ocean (2004) | Peru (2001) | |
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 |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years:
34.41% (male 4,803,464; female 4,654,890) 15-64 years: 60.8% (male 8,408,210; female 8,302,943) 65 years and over: 4.79% (male 603,309; female 711,048) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | coffee, cotton, sugarcane, rice, wheat, potatoes, plantains, coca; poultry, beef, dairy products, wool; fish |
Airports | - | 233 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total:
46 over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total:
187 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 25 914 to 1,523 m: 65 under 914 m: 95 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 155.557 million sq km
note: includes Bali Sea, Bering Sea, Bering Strait, Coral Sea, East China Sea, Gulf of Alaska, Gulf of Tonkin, Philippine Sea, Sea of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk, South China Sea, Tasman Sea, and other tributary water bodies |
total:
1,285,220 sq km land: 1.28 million sq km water: 5,220 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 15 times the size of the US; covers about 28% of the global surface; larger than the total land area of the world | slightly smaller than Alaska |
Background | The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the world's five oceans (followed by the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, and Arctic Ocean). Strategically important access waterways include the La Perouse, Tsugaru, Tsushima, Taiwan, Singapore, and Torres Straits. The decision by the International Hydrographic Organization in the spring of 2000 to delimit a fifth ocean, the Southern Ocean, removed the portion of the Pacific Ocean south of 60 degrees south. | After a dozen years of military rule, Peru returned to democratic leadership in 1980. In recent years, bold reform programs and significant progress in curtailing guerrilla activity and drug trafficking have resulted in solid economic growth. |
Birth rate | - | 23.9 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues:
$8.5 billion expenditures: $9.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $2 billion (1996 est.) |
Capital | - | Lima |
Climate | planetary air pressure systems and resultant wind patterns exhibit remarkable uniformity in the south and east; trade winds and westerly winds are well-developed patterns, modified by seasonal fluctuations; tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico from June to October and affect Mexico and Central America; continental influences cause climatic uniformity to be much less pronounced in the eastern and western regions at the same latitude in the North Pacific Ocean; the western Pacific is monsoonal - a rainy season occurs during the summer months, when moisture-laden winds blow from the ocean over the land, and a dry season during the winter months, when dry winds blow from the Asian landmass back to the ocean; tropical cyclones (typhoons) may strike southeast and east Asia from May to December | varies from tropical in east to dry desert in west; temperate to frigid in Andes |
Coastline | 135,663 km | 2,414 km |
Constitution | - | 31 December 1993 |
Country name | - | conventional long form:
Republic of Peru conventional short form: Peru local long form: Republica del Peru local short form: Peru |
Currency | - | nuevo sol (PEN) |
Death rate | - | 5.78 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $31 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | chief of mission:
Ambassador John HAMILTON embassy: Avenida La Encalada, Cuadra 17s/n, Surco, Lima 33 mailing address: P. O. Box 1995, Lima 1; American Embassy (Lima), APO AA 34031-5000 telephone: [51] (1) 434-3000 FAX: [51] (1) 434-3037 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | chief of mission:
Ambassador Alfonso RIVERO Monsalve chancery: 1700 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 833-9860 through 9869 FAX: [1] (202) 659-8124 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Paterson (New Jersey), San Francisco |
Disputes - international | some maritime disputes (see littoral states) | none |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $895.1 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | The Pacific Ocean is a major contributor to the world economy and particularly to those nations its waters directly touch. It provides low-cost sea transportation between East and West, extensive fishing grounds, offshore oil and gas fields, minerals, and sand and gravel for the construction industry. In 1996, over 60% of the world's fish catch came from the Pacific Ocean. Exploitation of offshore oil and gas reserves is playing an ever-increasing role in the energy supplies of the US, Australia, NZ, China, and Peru. The high cost of recovering offshore oil and gas, combined with the wide swings in world prices for oil since 1985, has led to fluctuations in new drillings. | The Peruvian economy has become increasingly market-oriented, with major privatizations completed since 1990 in the mining, electricity, and telecommunications industries. Thanks to strong foreign investment and the cooperation between the FUJIMORI government and the IMF and World Bank, growth was strong in 1994-97 and inflation was brought under control. In 1998, El Nino's impact on agriculture, the financial crisis in Asia, and instability in Brazilian markets undercut growth. And 1999 was another lean year for Peru, with the aftermath of El Nino and the Asian financial crisis working its way through the economy. Political instability resulting from the presidential election and FUJIMORI's subsequent departure from office limited economic growth in 2000. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 17.565 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | - | 1 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | - | 18.886 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
23.04% hydro: 76.43% nuclear: 0% other: 0.53% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench -10,924 m
highest point: sea level 0 m |
lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Nevado Huascaran 6,768 m |
Environment - current issues | endangered marine species include the dugong, sea lion, sea otter, seals, turtles, and whales; oil pollution in Philippine Sea and South China Sea | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | - | Amerindian 45%, mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 37%, white 15%, black, Japanese, Chinese, and other 3% |
Exchange rates | - | nuevo sol per US dollar - 3.5230 (January 2001), 3.4900 (2000), 3.383 (1999), 2.930 (1998), 2.664 (1997), 2.453 (1996) |
Executive branch | - | chief of state:
President Alejandro TOLEDO (since 28 July 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government; additionally two vice presidents are provided for by the Constitution, First Vice President Raul DIEZ Conseco (since 28 July 2001) and Second Vice President David WAISMAN (since 28 July 2001) head of government: President Alejandro TOLEDO (since 28 July 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government; additionally two vice presidents are provided for by the Constitution, First Vice President Raul DIEZ Conseco (since 28 July 2001) and Second Vice President David WAISMAN (since 28 July 2001) note: Prime Minister Roberto DANINO (since 28 July 2001) does not exercise executive power; this power is in the hands of the president cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; special presidential election held 8 April 2001 with runoff election 3 June 2001); next to be held NA 2006 election results: President TOLEDO elected in runoff election; percent of vote - Alejandro TOLEDO 53.1%, Alan GARCIA 46.9% |
Exports | - | $7 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | - | fish and fish products, copper, zinc, gold, crude petroleum and byproducts, lead, coffee, sugar, cotton |
Exports - partners | - | US 29%, EU 25%, Andean Community 6%, Japan 4%, Mercosur 3% (1999) |
Fiscal year | - | calendar year |
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 llama, cinchona tree (the source of quinine), and a yellow cornucopia spilling out gold coins, all framed by a green wreath |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $123 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture:
15% industry: 42% services: 43% (1999) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $4,550 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 3.6% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 0 00 N, 160 00 W | 10 00 S, 76 00 W |
Geography - note | the major chokepoints are the Bering Strait, Panama Canal, Luzon Strait, and the Singapore Strait; the Equator divides the Pacific Ocean into the North Pacific Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean; dotted with low coral islands and rugged volcanic islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean | shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake, with Bolivia |
Highways | - | total:
72,900 km paved: 8,700 km unpaved: 64,200 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%:
1.9% highest 10%: 34.3% (1994) |
Illicit drugs | - | until 1996 the world's largest coca leaf producer, Peru reduced the area of coca under cultivation by 64% to 34,200 hectares between 1996 and the end of 2000; much of the cocaine base is shipped to neighboring Colombia for processing into cocaine for the international drug market; increasing amounts of finished cocaine, however, are being shipped to Europe or to Brazil and Bolivia for use in the Southern Cone or transshipped to world markets |
Imports | - | $7.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | - | machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum, iron and steel, chemicals, pharmaceuticals |
Imports - partners | - | US 32%, EU 21%, Andean Community 6%, Mercosur 8%, Japan 5% (1999) |
Independence | - | 28 July 1821 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | 8.5% (2000 est.) |
Industries | - | mining of metals, petroleum, fishing, textiles, clothing, food processing, cement, auto assembly, steel, shipbuilding, metal fabrication |
Infant mortality rate | - | 39.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 3.7% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | - | ABEDA, APEC, CAN, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA, MONUC, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 10 (2000) |
Irrigated land | - | 12,800 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges are appointed by the National Council of the Judiciary) |
Labor force | - | 7.6 million (1996 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture, mining and quarrying, manufacturing, construction, transport, services |
Land boundaries | - | total:
5,536 km border countries: Bolivia 900 km, Brazil 1,560 km, Chile 160 km, Colombia 1,496 km (est.), Ecuador 1,420 km |
Land use | - | arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 21% forests and woodland: 66% other: 10% (1993 est.) |
Languages | - | Spanish (official), Quechua (official), Aymara |
Legal system | - | based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral Democratic Constituent Congress or Congresso Constituyente Democratico (120 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 April 2000 (next to be held 8 April 2001) note: many congressmen defected to and then from former President FUJIMORI's coalition in 2000 election results: percent of vote by party - Peru 2000 42.16%, Peru Possible 23.34%, FIM 7.56%, Somos Peru 7.2%, APRA 5.5%, others 14.24%; seats by party - Peru 2000 52, Peru Possible 29, FIM 9, others 30 |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population:
70.3 years male: 67.9 years female: 72.81 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 88.7% male: 94.5% female: 83% (1995 est.) |
Location | body of water between the Southern Ocean, Asia, Australia, and the Western Hemisphere | Western South America, bordering the South Pacific Ocean, between Chile and Ecuador |
Map references | Political Map of the World | South America |
Maritime claims | - | continental shelf:
200 NM territorial sea: 200 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 40,623 GRT/61,769 DWT ships by type: cargo 5, petroleum tanker 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | - | Army (Ejercito Peruano), Navy (Marina de Guerra del Peru; includes Naval Air, Marines, and Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea del Peru), National Police (Policia Nacional) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $1 billion (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.9% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
7,205,675 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
4,847,250 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 20 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
276,458 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | - | Independence Day, 28 July (1821) |
Nationality | - | noun:
Peruvian(s) adjective: Peruvian |
Natural hazards | surrounded by a zone of violent volcanic and earthquake activity sometimes referred to as the "Pacific Ring of Fire"; subject to tropical cyclones (typhoons) in southeast and east Asia from May to December (most frequent from July to October); tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico and strike Central America and Mexico from June to October (most common in August and September); cyclical El Nino/La Nina phenomenon occurs in the equatorial Pacific, influencing weather in the Western Hemisphere and the western Pacific; ships subject to superstructure icing in extreme north from October to May; persistent fog in the northern Pacific can be a maritime hazard from June to December | earthquakes, tsunamis, flooding, landslides, mild volcanic activity |
Natural resources | oil and gas fields, polymetallic nodules, sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, fish | copper, silver, gold, petroleum, timber, fish, iron ore, coal, phosphate, potash, hydropower |
Net migration rate | - | -1.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 800 km; natural gas and natural gas liquids 64 km |
Political parties and leaders | - | American Popular Revolutionary Alliance or APRA [Alan GARCIA]; Andean Rebirth [Ciro GALVEZ Herreria]; Avancemos [leader NA]; Democratic Cause [Jorge SANTISTEVAN]; Independent Moralizing Front or FIM [Fernando OLIVERA Vega]; National Solidarity or SN [Luis CASTANEDA Lossio]; National Unity [Lourdes FLORES Nano]; Peru 2000 [leader NA]; Peru Posible or PP [Alejandro TOLEDO Maniquez]; Popular Action or AP [leader NA]; Popular Agrarian Front of Peru or Frepap [leader NA]; Popular Solution [Carlos BOLONA Behr]; Project Country [Mario Antonio ARRUNATEGUI]; Somos Peru or SP [Alberto ANDRADE]; Union for Peru or UPP [leader NA]; Vamos Vecinos or VV [Absalon VASQUEZ] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | leftist guerrilla groups include Shining Path [Abimael GUZMAN Reynoso (imprisoned), Gabriel MACARIO (top leader at-large)]; Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement or MRTA [Victor POLAY (imprisoned), Hugo AVALLENEDA Valdez (top leader at-large)] |
Population | - | 27,483,864 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | 49% (1994 est.) |
Population growth rate | - | 1.7% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bangkok (Thailand), Hong Kong, Kao-hsiung (Taiwan), Los Angeles (US), Manila (Philippines), Pusan (South Korea), San Francisco (US), Seattle (US), Shanghai (China), Singapore, Sydney (Australia), Vladivostok (Russia), Wellington (NZ), Yokohama (Japan) | Callao, Chimbote, Ilo, Matarani, Paita, Puerto Maldonado, Salaverry, San Martin, Talara, Iquitos, Pucallpa, Yurimaguas
note: Iquitos, Pucallpa, and Yurimaguas are all on the upper reaches of the Amazon and its tributaries |
Radio broadcast stations | - | AM 472, FM 198, shortwave 189 (1999) |
Radios | - | 6.65 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total:
1,988 km standard gauge: 1,608 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 380 km 0.914-m gauge |
Religions | - | Roman Catholic 90% |
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: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | - | general assessment:
adequate for most requirements domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system and a domestic satellite system with 12 earth stations international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); Pan American submarine cable |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 1.509 million (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 504,995 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | - | 13 (plus 112 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | surface currents in the northern Pacific are dominated by a clockwise, warm-water gyre (broad circular system of currents) and in the southern Pacific by a counterclockwise, cool-water gyre; in the northern Pacific, sea ice forms in the Bering Sea and Sea of Okhotsk in winter; in the southern Pacific, sea ice from Antarctica reaches its northernmost extent in October; the ocean floor in the eastern Pacific is dominated by the East Pacific Rise, while the western Pacific is dissected by deep trenches, including the Mariana Trench, which is the world's deepest | western coastal plain (costa), high and rugged Andes in center (sierra), eastern lowland jungle of Amazon Basin (selva) |
Total fertility rate | - | 2.96 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Transportation - note | Inside Passage offers protected waters from southeast Alaska to Puget Sound (Washington state) | - |
Unemployment rate | - | 7.7%; extensive underemployment (1997) |
Waterways | - | 8,808 km
note: 8,600 km of navigable tributaries of Amazon system and 208 km of Lago Titicaca |