TOEFL Test Centers in Peru

EDU February 16, 2019

Peru Overview

Peru is a republic in western South America with the capital Lima. The third largest country in South America is located on the Pacific and is divided into three landscape units. The Costa is a desert-like coastal plain with irrigation oases where sugar cane and cotton are grown. The Sierra, the Andean highlands, are relatively densely populated and well suited for agriculture and livestock farming. To the east joins the Oriente, the eastern Andean capping with part of the Amazon lowlands. There are extensive oil deposits there.

The climate is tropical. 26% of the population belong to the indigenous population of the Quechua and Aimara, 60% are mixed descendants of whites and indigenous people (Mestizo). 6% belong to the white upper class. Around half of the population is concentrated on the coast. As a result of the rural exodus, the degree of urbanization is almost 80%. The social and regional inequality in the population is very pronounced. A white elite living in the coastal regions affords a life on a western level. The rural population, consisting of indigenous people and descendants from the union of Europeans and indigenous people, is often excluded from social, political and economic participation. Most Peruvians are Catholic, followed by Protestants.

The Spanish language and the literature, architecture and art of the Spanish colonizers dominate the country’s culture. Especially in the Andean highlands, the tradition and customs of the indigenous peoples are firmly rooted in everyday life. Before the arrival of the Spaniards, the Inca had created a unitary state whose power had already been weakened when the Spaniard F. Pizarro conquered the country in 1532. In 1543 the viceroyalty of Peru was founded, from which Ecuador(1739) and Bolivia (1776), among others, were later separated. 1821–24 Peru fought for independence. The time after 1945 was marked by several military coups. Since 1980 Peru has been ruled by elected civil governments.

After Brazil and Chile, Peru has the largest reserves of raw materials in South America. As a result, the mining sector accounts for 60% of exports. Other important export products are fishery products and coffee. In terms of foreign policy, the country has traditionally been closely aligned with the USA. Since the conclusion of a peace treaty in 1998, the historically strained relationship with neighboring Ecuador has developed positively.

Country facts

• Official name: Republic of Peru
• License plate: PE
• ISO-3166: PE, PER (604)
• Internet domain:.pe
• Currency: 1 Sol (S /.) = 100 Céntimos
• Area: 1,285,220 km²
• Population (2018): 32 million
• Capital: Lima
• Official language (s): Spanish, Quechua, Aimara
• Form of government: Presidential Republic
• Administrative structure: 25 departments
• Head of State: President Pedro Castillo (since July 28, 2021)
• Religion (s) (2017): 60% Catholics, 14.6% Protestants, 3% other, 25.1% non-denominational
• Time zone: Central European Time –6 hours
• National holiday: July 28th

Location and infrastructure

• Location (geographical): South America
• Position (coordinates): between 0 ° and 18 ° 20 ‘south latitude and 68 ° 30’ and 81 ° 30 ‘west longitude
• Climate: Tropical climate, desert climate on the coast, tropical high-altitude climates in the Andes
• Highest mountain: Huascarán (6,768 m)
• Road network (2012): 140 700 km (18 700 km paved)
• Railway network (2014): 1,854 km

Population

• Annual population growth (2018): 0.9%
• Birth rate (2018): 17.6 per 1,000 residents.
• Death rate (2018): 6.1 per 1,000 residents.
• Average age (2018): 28.4 years
• Average life expectancy (2018): 74.2 years (women 76.4; men 72.1)
• Age structure (2018): 26% younger than 15 years, 7.6% older than 65 years
• Literacy rate (15-year-olds and older) (2016): 94.2%
• Mobile phone contracts (pre-paid and post-paid) (2017): 121 per 100 residents
• Internet users (2017): 49 per 100 residents

Economy

• GDP per capita (2017): US $ 6,732
• Total GDP (2017): US $ 214 billion
• GNI per capita (2018): US $ 6 530
• Education expenditure (2016): 3.8% of GDP
• Military expenditure (2017): 0.9% of GDP
• Unemployment rate (2017): 3.7%

Climate

Peru has a wide range of tropical climates. The coastal plain is under the influence of the cold Humboldt or Peruvian currents, which prevent the air masses from rising and condensing (less than 50 mm of precipitation per year); thick blanket of fog (Garúa) from June to December. In the highlands there is sufficient summer rainfall (600–1,000 mm per year) for rain-fed agriculture. The temperature decreases with altitude, but even at 3,300 m above sea level the annual mean temperatures are still around 16 ° C, so that arable farming is possible up to around 4,000 m above sea level. The snow line is around 5,000 m above sea level. In the Amazon lowlands (with ever-humid tropical rainforest as a natural vegetation formation), the precipitation reaches 2,500–3,000 mm per year with annual mean temperatures around 26 ° C.