Peru

• approximately one third of the population resides along the desert coastal belt in the west, with a strong focus on the capital city of Lima;
• the Andean highlands, or sierra, contain roughly half of the population;
• the eastern slopes of the Andes and adjoining rainforest are sparsely populated

noun:

Peruvian(s)

adjective:

Peruvian

total:

30.4 years (2025 est.)

male:

29.1 years

female:

31.3 years

• approximately one third of the population resides along the desert coastal belt in the west, with a strong focus on the capital city of Lima;
• the Andean highlands, or sierra, contain roughly half of the population;
• the eastern slopes of the Andes and adjoining rainforest are sparsely populated

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.96 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.75 male(s)/female

total population:

0.96 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

total:

10.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)

male:

11.9 deaths/1,000 live births

female:

9.7 deaths/1,000 live births

total population:

68.9 years (2024 est.)

male:

65.4 years

female:

72.7 years

total:

5.74 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

beer:

3.01 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

wine:

0.46 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

spirits:

2.26 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

other alcohols:

0.01 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

total:

5.7% (2025 est.)

male:

9.5% (2025 est.)

female:

2.1% (2025 est.)

women married by age 15:

2% (2020)

women married by age 18:

14.1% (2020)

• deforestation (some the result of illegal logging);
• overgrazing leading to soil erosion;
• desertification;
• air pollution in Lima;
• pollution of rivers and coastal waters from municipal and mining wastes;
• overfishing

urban population:

78.9% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization:

1.33% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

energy:

233.6 kt (2022-2024 est.)

agriculture:

623.5 kt (2019-2021 est.)

waste:

317 kt (2019-2021 est.)

other:

51.9 kt (2019-2021 est.)

municipal solid waste generated annually:

8.357 million tons (2024 est.)

percent of municipal solid waste recycled:

9.2% (2022 est.)

municipal:

3.141 billion cubic meters (2022)

industrial:

1.666 billion cubic meters (2022)

agricultural:

21.112 billion cubic meters (2022)

total global geoparks and regional networks:

1

global geoparks and regional networks:

Colca y Volcanes de Andagua (2023)

conventional long form:

Republic of Peru

conventional short form:

Peru

local long form:

República del Perú

local short form:

Perú

etymology:

the name may derive from the Guarani word biru, meaning "river"

name:

Lima

geographic coordinates:

12 03 S, 77 03 W

time difference:

UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

• the name is an early Spanish mispronunciation of the Quechua name Rimak , referring to a god and deriving from the word rima (to speak);
• Quechua priests used to speak to worshippers from inside statues of their gods

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

history:

several previous; latest promulgated 29 December 1993, enacted 31 December 1993

amendment process:

• proposed by Congress, by the president of the republic with the approval of the Council of Ministers or by petition of at least 0.3% of voters;
• passage requires absolute majority approval by the Congress membership, followed by approval in a referendum;
• a referendum is not required if Congress approves the amendment by greater than two-thirds majority vote in each of two successive sessions

citizenship by birth:

yes

citizenship by descent only:

yes

dual citizenship recognized:

yes

residency requirement for naturalization:

2 years

legislature name:

Congress of the Republic (Congreso de la República)

legislative structure:

unicameral

number of seats:

130 (all directly elected)

electoral system:

proportional representation

scope of elections:

full renewal

term in office:

5 years

most recent election date:

4/11/2021

parties elected and seats per party:

• Free Peru (PL) (37);
• Popular Force (FP) (24);
• Popular Action (AP) (16);
• Alliance for Progress (APP) (15);
• Go on Country - Social Integration Party (AvP) (10);
• Popular Renewal (RP) (9);
• We Are Peru" (SP) - Purple Party (PM) (9);
• Other (10)

percentage of women in chamber:

41.5%

expected date of next election:

April 2026

highest court(s):

Supreme Court (consists of 16 judges and divided into civil, criminal, and constitutional-social sectors)

judge selection and term of office:

• justices proposed by the National Board of Justice (a 7-member independent body), nominated by the president, and confirmed by the Congress;
• justices can serve until mandatory retirement at 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

• Advance the Nation (Avanza País) or AvP
• Alliance for Progress (Alianza para el Progreso) or APP
• Broad Front (Frente Amplio) or FA
• Free Peru (Perú Libre) or PL
• Front for Hope (Frente Esperanza)
• Magisterial Block of National Concentration (Bloque Magisterial de Concertación Nacional) or BMCN
• National Victory (Victoria Nacional) or VN
• Peru Bicentennial (Perú Bicentenario) or PB
• Popular Action (Acción Popular) or AP
• Popular Force (Fuerza Popular) or FP
• Popular Renewal (Renovación Popular) or RP
• Purple Party (Partido Morado)
• Social Integration Party (Avanza País - Partido de Integración Social)
• Together For Perú (Juntos por el Peru) or JP
• We Are Peru (Somos Perú) of SP
• We Can Peru (Podemos Perú) or PP

chief of mission:

Ambassador-designate Bernardo NAVARRO; Chargé d’Affaires Joan PERKINS (since 18 April 2025)

embassy:

Avenida La Encalada, Cuadra 17 s/n, Surco, Lima 33

mailing address:

3230 Lima Place, Washington DC 20521-3230

telephone:

[51] (1) 618-2000

FAX:

[51] (1) 618-2724

email address and website:

[email protected]; https://pe.usembassy.gov/

description:

• three equal vertical bands of red (left side), white, and red, with the coat of arms centered on the white band;
• the coat of arms has a shield with a vicuna, a cinchona tree, and a yellow cornucopia spilling out coins

meaning:

• the vicuna represents fauna, the cinchona tree is the source of quinine, and the cornucopia symbolizes mineral wealth;
• red stands for blood shed for independence, and white for peace

title:

"Himno Nacional del Peru" (National Anthem of Peru)

lyrics/music:

Jose DE LA TORRE Ugarte/Jose Bernardo ALZEDO

history:

adopted 1821

total World Heritage Sites:

13 (9 cultural, 2 natural, 2 mixed)

selected World Heritage Site locales:

• Cuzco (c);
• Machu Picchu (m);
• Chavin (c);
• Historic Lima (c);
• Huascarán National Park (n);
• Chan Chan (c);
• Manú National Park (n);
• Lines and Geoglyphs of Nazca (c);
• Rio Abiseo National Park (m);
• Historic Arequipa (c);
• Sacred City of Caral-Supe (c);
• Qhapaq Ñan/Andean Road System (c)

• upper-middle-income South American economy;
• strong post-COVID rebound tempered by political uncertainty and climate risks;
• exports driven by mineral extraction and agriculture;
• large informal sector and uneven access to public services;
• stable fiscal position and financial sector

agriculture:

6.1% (2024 est.)

industry:

32.2% (2024 est.)

services:

52.7% (2024 est.)

note: figures may not total 100% due to non-allocated consumption not captured in sector-reported data

• 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

total:

8.8% (2024 est.)

male:

7.9% (2024 est.)

female:

9.8% (2024 est.)

note: % of labor force ages 15-24 seeking employment

on food:

26.9% of household expenditures (2023 est.)

on alcohol and tobacco:

2.5% of household expenditures (2023 est.)

lowest 10%:

2% (2023 est.)

highest 10%:

30.6% (2023 est.)

note: % share of income accruing to lowest and highest 10% of population

production:

1.382 million metric tons (2023 est.)

consumption:

973,000 metric tons (2023 est.)

exports:

1.261 million metric tons (2023 est.)

imports:

446,000 metric tons (2023 est.)

proven reserves:

1.567 billion metric tons (2023 est.)

total petroleum production:

118,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)

refined petroleum consumption:

255,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)

crude oil estimated reserves:

858.89 million barrels (2021 est.)

production:

14.647 billion cubic meters (2023 est.)

consumption:

9.675 billion cubic meters (2023 est.)

exports:

4.883 billion cubic meters (2023 est.)

proven reserves:

300.159 billion cubic meters (2021 est.)

• 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 5,000 radio stations including a substantial number of local-language stations (2021)

total:

1,854.4 km (2017)

standard gauge:

1,730.4 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge (34 km electrified)

narrow gauge:

124 km (2014) 0.914-m gauge

total ports:

20 (2024)

large:

0

medium:

1

small:

3

very small:

16

ports with oil terminals:

16

key ports:

Bahia de Matarani, Iquitos, Puerto del Callao, Talara

• the military's inventory consists of mostly older or secondhand armaments originating from a range of countries, including Brazil, China, France, Germany, Italy, Russia/former Soviet Union, South Korea, Spain, and the US;
• Peru has a small defense industry, including a shipyard that builds and upgrades naval vessels;
• it also has defense industrial cooperation agreements with several countries, including Russia, South Korea, Spain, and the US (2025)

• focuses on acquiring satellites, applying space applications such as data satellite imagery, and building small rockets;
• has built a small science/technology satellite;
• operates satellites and processes satellite imagery data;
• builds and launches sounding rockets with goal of developing a satellite/space launch vehicle (SLV);
• researching, developing, and acquiring technologies for manufacturing satellites and satellite payloads, including remote sensing (RS) capabilities;
• member of Latin American and Caribbean Space Agency (ALCE) since its formation in 2021;
• cooperates with a variety of foreign space agencies and industries, including those of Brazil, China, the ESA, individual ESA member states (particularly France and Germany), India, Russia, South Korea, Thailand, and the US, as well as other ALCE signatories (2025)

• 2006 - launched first sounding rocket/space probe (Paulet-1)
• 2013 - first domestically built scientific/research satellite (PUCP-SAT-1) launched by Russia; launched first domestically built rocket (Paulet 1-B) capable of reaching the stratosphere
• 2016 - first remote sensing satellite (PeruSat-1) acquired from France and launched on European rocket
• 2024 - signed US-led Artemis Accords on space and lunar exploration

refugees:

546,699 (2024 est.)

IDPs:

83,441 (2024 est.)

stateless persons:

32 (2024 est.)