Country Pages

Photo courtesy of www.enjoyperu.com

Peru, the largest in land area of the Andean countries, was home to the Incas, the most advanced indigenous civilization and most powerful empire in pre-Columbian South America. Peru was also the focus of Spanish colonial domination for its first two hundred years of rule. What remained of pre-Columbian America with regard to people, culture, and settlements is perhaps better represented in Peru than in any other country of Latin America. Peru also has some of the most spectacular and varied scenery in South America. The country has a 1,500-mile long coast on the Pacific Ocean and borders Colombia and Ecuador in the north, Brazil and Bolivia on the east, and Chile on the south.

The Amazon Basin, which occupies half of Peru, is one of the world's top 10 biodiversity hot spots and home of important national reserves, such as Manu. The northern coast consists of deserts, farmland oases and fishing villages.

Woman wearing traditional dress. Photo by ArtToday.com

Peruvian society is as complex as its topography and is marked by deep social and ethnic divisions. About 45% of Peru's population of 28 million is indigenous, while mestizos make up about 37% and whites 15%. There are also small numbers of persons of Japanese, Chinese, and African descent.

Peru made headlines in the U.S. in the 1980s and early 90s during the violent insurgency by the Maoist Shining Path. Since that time the country has had a turbulent political trajectory that has prevented the country from addressing its two central problems of unemployment and poverty. These problems continue to persist despite the country's positive macroeconomic indicators. The government wants to expand the economy through diversification of production and increase of exports in order to bring the country more fully into the regional and world economy. The challenge is to spread the benefits of growth across all social sectors. The high growth of recent years has not yet trickled down to the poor majority.

Photo by Bähr

Peru is a centralized country, which is reflected in its educational system. The capital of Lima is the home of the first university founded in the Americas in 1551, the National University of San Marcos. A decentralization effort is now underway and the Fulbright Commission in Peru wants to support it by placing Fulbright scholars at provincial universities in any number of fields, to support regional development and improve the capacity of regional institutions.

Peru's natural beauty and cultural richness combined with its development challenges make it a fascinating site for Fulbright scholars from a large number of disciplines interested in areas such as civil society development, democratization, economic development, indigenous issues, public sector management, urban planning, environmental sciences, archaeology, history and many other fields. Peru accepts applications from scholars in all disciplines; recent grantees have come from fields as varied as photography, journalism, literature, political science, engineering, performing arts.

Peru has thirty three public universities, forty six private universities, and a number of well regarded research institutions. Since 1980, over three hundred grants to Peru have been awarded to U.S. scholars.

CIES encourages interested applicants to make use of the following links to complement their research into potential opportunities available in Peru. Please also feel free to use the contact information to get in touch with CIES program personnel.

The Commission for Educational Exchange Between the USA and Peru
http://www.fulbrightperu.info
Extensive information on the Fulbright program in Peru

U.S. Embassy in Lima, Peru
http://www.lima.usembassy.gov
Official site of the U.S. Embassy in Peru, with consular information, current news, and information on public affairs, with in-depth reports on political and economic issues.

Embassy of Peru, Washington D.C.
http://www..peruvianembassy.us
An in-depth site with extensive news, political and economic information and news archives.

Embassy World Website
http://www.embassyworld.com/maps/Maps_Of_Peru.html
Links to a variety of interactive maps of Peru

Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism
LINK www.mincetur.gob.pe
Useful links regarding tourism and travel in Peru

Ministry of Education
http://www.minedu.gob.pe/
Provides official government information on education in Peru.

Ministry of Health
http://www.minsa.gob.pe/index2.asp
Provides information on the health system in Peru.

Lonely Planet
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/Peru
Traveler's information on Peru, including sections on events, activities, culture, and history.

World Travel Guide
http://www.wtgonline.com/data/per/per.asp
Travel information including information on sports, climate, business, health, and good regional and city information.

U.S. Department of State
http://www.state.gov/p/wha/ci/c2893.htm
Background information on Peru including political conditions, foreign relations, relations with the U.S., history, people, government, economy, and business.

Library of Congress
http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/hispanic/peru/peru.html
Comprehensive guide to many aspects of life in Peru gathered by regional experts at the Library of Congress.

Spanish Language Lessons in Peru
http://www.spanishcourses.info/spanishcourses.asp
Lists available Spanish lesson schools for English speakers in various locations within Peru.

National Rector's Council (ANR=
http://www.anr.edu.pe
Organization that supervises the activities of universities in Peru

Catholic University of Peru
http://www.pucp.edu.pe/

National University of San Marcos
http://www.unmsm.edu.pe/

Peru University Link
http://www.perulinks.com/pages/english/Education/Universities/more5.html
For a more extensive list of Peruvian institutions.

Radio Programas del Peru
http://www.rpp.com.pe

El Comercio
http://www.elcomercioperu.com.pe
Online Spanish language newspaper focusing on Peru, with national, regional, and international news.

Caretas
www.caretas.com.pe/
Popular Spanish language weekly newsmagazine

Discussion Groups / Listservs

General Information on Latin America
U.S. Department of State - The Americas
http://usinfo.state.gov/wh/
U.S. news, reports, and policy relating to the Americas. Also includes links to numerous Online journals.

Latin American Network Information Center
http://lanic.utexas.edu/
Comprehensive information about every aspect of Latin American life and culture, including specific information about Peru.

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