Peru: Background & Geography

Introduction Peru
Background:
 Ancient Peru was the seat of several prominent Andean civilizations, most notably that of the Incas whose empire was captured by the Spanish conquistadores in 1533. Peruvian independence was declared in 1821, and remaining Spanish forces 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. FUJIMORI won reelection to a third term in the spring of 2000, but international pressure and corruption scandals led to his ouster by Congress in November of that year. A caretaker government oversaw new elections in the spring of 2001, which ushered in Alejandro TOLEDO as the new head of government.
Geography Peru
Location:
 Western South America, bordering the South Pacific Ocean, between Chile and Ecuador
Geographic coordinates:
 10 00 S, 76 00 W
Map references:
 South America
Area:
 total: 1,285,220 sq km
water: 5,220 sq km
land: 1.28 million sq km
Area - comparative:
 slightly smaller than Alaska
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
Coastline:
 2,414 km
Maritime claims - as described in UNCLOS 1982 (see Notes and Definitions):
 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: 2.85%
permanent crops: 0.38%
other: 96.77% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
 11,950 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
 earthquakes, tsunamis, flooding, landslides, mild volcanic activity
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
Environment - 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
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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

See Also: