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48% of women work in the informal sector without benefits.

15% of rural girls drop out of primary school every year.

5.2% of women may lack any form of identification—birth certificate or identity card—which excludes them from the system, i.e., access to education, health, justice, employment, and credit services, and limits their ability to exercise rights.

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Country Snapshot: Peru and Education

Photo of boys and girls marching. Caption Reads: Girls and boys take part in a campaign to promote and value gender and ethnic diversity.
Girls and boys take part in a campaign to promote and value gender and ethnic diversity.

USAID is working to improve the local management of quality basic education services to respond to the educational needs of the poor, and, therefore, increase their opportunities and productive capacity, while reducing the potential for conflict.

Opening Doors
Friendly Schools
Peru-Ecuador Border Development Project

Opening Doors

Through the Punkunata Kichaspa or Opening Doors project, USAID/Peru has helped 4500 girls and boys under three years old improve their motor, psycho- affective, and language abilities. The project also has successfully promoted the inclusion of girls in primary education and their completion of basic studies by instilling gender equity principles in their families and training over 560 teachers. From October 1999 through December 2003, Opening Doors helped build a commitment to girls' education in 150 communities, totaling 6000 women, men, and adolescents. Major partners included UNICEF, the Peruvian Ministry of Education, and the Academy for Educational Development (AED).

Friendly Schools

In 2003, USAID/Peru helped establish 50 "Friendly Schools" that support a culture of peace, create a democratic environment, and promote equal roles for girls and boys. The schools are located in the very poor regions of Ayacucho, Apurimac, and Huancavelica, areas that have been hit hard by terrorism for two decades. In addition, 50 Community Defense Centers were opened, which included the election of "Defenders of Community Rights," who each heard approximately 350 cases ranging from child abuse to parents not vaccinating their children.

Peru-Ecuador Border Development Project

As part of the Peru-Ecuador border development activity, USAID/Peru has helped train 275 school teachers on gender, equity, valuing diversity, bilingual education, and intercultural relations, which will benefit more than 7,000 students. According to community leaders and parents, girls' school attendance improved in Amazon target communities as a result of the application of a bilingual education approach responsive to their cultural needs. The activity also completed a detailed study on the roles of the Aguaruna-Huambisa and Kichwa women that was designed to identify ways to improve women's participation in the border development program and support women's initiatives to address inequalities in the traditional gender relations within native communities.

Peru Program Objectives

Health
Economic Growth
Education
Democracy & Governance
Human Rights
Trafficking in Persons

Selected Activities

Radionovelas
Micro-finance
Poverty Alleviation Project (PRA)
Opening Doors
Friendly Schools
Peru-Ecuador Border Development Project
Civil Society Consortium
Psychological Services to Victims of Torture
Human Rights Protection

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Global Snapshots: Peru Homepage

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Last Updated on: June 09, 2008