Post 2015: Global Action for an Inclusive and Sustainable Future

example, in low increases in tax efforts (0.6%
of GDp between 2005 and 2011, excluding the
mining sector) despite the considerable growth
rates. between July 2001 and July 2012, peru has
had 12 different cabinets, with an average life span
of 11 months. public institutions are needed to
regulate industry and coordinate multiple actors
and agencies so that such regulations are properly
applied. there is a lack of support among the ruling
elite for economic transformation based on creating
jobs among the poorer sections of the population,
and tackling inequalities by promoting linkages
between economic sectors and regions. at the same
time there is a fairly strong consensus among the
political elite, economists and technocrats on the
need to safeguard macroeconomic stability.
the nature of the political settlement appears
primarily to accommodate the urban middle classes
and while this does allow for some redistributive
policies it also incorporates a wariness of a return
to left-leaning government:
“In the first decade of the 2000s, redistributive
policies relied on a “trickle-down” effect and social
policies were implemented through programs that
aimed increasingly at assisting the extremely poor.
At the same time the middle class grew, and with it
the notion that hard-earned assets could be lost if
left-leaning political groups were to win an election”
(peru case study)
there are social conflicts, but the most enduring
ones seem to be caused in rural areas by the presence
of extractive industries (mining, gas and oil). these
are areas where there remain high levels of poverty
and a concentration of indigenous populations that
have traditionally been excluded from the benefits
of economic growth and social policies. apparently,
these conflicts and the prospects of more to come
are too remote from the centre of power and too
fragmented to threaten the political survival of the
ruling coalitions. the threats to political survival
posed by challenges to the ecological sustainability
of, among other things current extraction policies
and practices, may create pressures for a change in
the policies that are given priority.
4.2 Role and importance of international links
Economic growth, trade and investment
peru’s economic growth of up to 7% per year
between 2005 and 2011 is among the highest in
latin america. this growth is largely due to the
extractive industry, primarily explained by china’s
need to import minerals. Foreign investments
increased from $5 billion in 1995 to $25 billion
in 2011, of which 20% flowed into the extractive
sector, which now represents 14% of GDp. In 2011,
mining represented 24% of total FDI, finance 18%,
communications 17% and industry 14%. the recent
cycle of economic expansion in the extractive sector
has been accompanied by new environmental
policies, for example regarding environmental
management systems. the process leading to
these measures benefited from international
normative and regulatory frameworks relating to
environmental protection.
most new jobs were created in high-productivity
and capital-intensive sectors, whereas
unemployment and underemployment are found
mainly in low-productivity sectors. Export favours
traditional products (mainly raw materials), which
represent 78% of total exports, making the sector
vulnerable to price fluctuations on global markets.
International trade increased more rapidly than
economic activity between 2000 and 2011, with
total exports and imports rising from 27% of GDp
to 47% of GDp. raw materials topped the export
list and capital goods and inputs represented more
than 80% of total imports. In 2011, the Eu was the
destination of 22% of peruvian exports and the
origin of 15% of peru’s imports. the case study
highlights that the Eu is an ‘important player in
the peruvian economy’. the recently signed Free
trade agreement (Fta) between the Eu and peru
gives confidence that trade flows will continue to
increase despite Europe’s ‘short-term problems’.
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