Written question asked by Lord Avebury (Liberal Democrat), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Baroness Amos (Labour) on Wednesday, 7 February 2007.

Peru: Millennium Development Goals

Question: asked Her Majesty's Government:What information they have concerning progress towards attainment of the millennium development goals in Peru; and how they are monitoring these since the Department for International Development has dropped all its programmes in the country.

Answer: Progress in moving towards the achievement of the millennium development goals (MDGs) in Peru has been unequal. Between 1991 and 2002, extreme poverty in Peru increased from 23 per cent to 23.9 per cent of the population and households experiencing hunger increased from 22.3 per cent to 35.8 per cent. Since 2002, extreme poverty has been decreasing in Peru. Since 1991, maternal and infant mortality indicators have constantly improved. Progress has been slower in poor rural areas and among indigenous people. Extreme poverty affects 50.3 per cent of the population in rural areas and 9.7 per cent of the population in urban areas. According to data provided by the United Nations development programme, Peru will meet the MDGs on poverty, health and education only if economic growth is accompanied by redistributive and social policies to tackle inequality. DfID continues to assist Peru to reach the millennium development goals, primarily through our contributions to the European Commission, World Bank, and Inter-American Development Bank. In addition, DfID’s Latin America regional programme works to enhance the effectiveness of World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank. This is done by strengthening the focus of operations and analytical work on poverty, inequality and inclusion. For Peru, this work is led by the DfID Andes office in Bolivia, supported by the DfID liaison officer in Lima.

Secondary information