THE LESSONS OF CARABAYLLO: MAKING TOUGH CHOICES
Jim Yong Kim, President of the World Bank Group, on the assistance the bank is providing to Peru's development.
BIOGRAPHY
Jim Yong Kim graduated from Brown University in 1982. He earned an MD from Harvard Medical School in 1991 and a PhD in anthropology from Harvard University in 1993. He became the 12th President of the World Bank Group in July 2012. He comes to the bank after serving as President of Dartmouth College. Kim is a co-founder of Partners In Health (PIH) and the former director of the HIV/AIDS Department at the World Health Organization (WHO). He was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2003 and was named one of TIME magazine’s “100 Most Influential People in the World” in 2006.Peru is a far more prosperous and just society today than a generation ago. Over the past 10 years, Peru's GDP has increased at an average rate of over 6% each year. During the boom years, strong domestic demand and high commodity prices fueled a decade of robust growth. Growth was inclusive and the size of the middle class became larger than that of the poor. But Peru, like other countries in Latin America, is now feeling the headwinds of a slowing global economy, with lower commodity prices that may stay depressed for some time, and an exodus of capital from developing countries that seems to be accelerating.
The question we ask today is how we can help developing countries grow in the face of slow global growth, the end of the commodities super-cycle, pending interest rate hikes, and capital flight from emerging markets. In tough times, countries that do well have already made the difficult choices. But countries that have not yet still can; it is not too late. Every effort must be made to improve productivity. And in a period when banks are de-risking, we have to ensure that capital is accessible—especially for small business owners and entrepreneurs who will create jobs. More specifically, countries should invest in women, which can be one of the most effective pro-growth strategies by any government. Closing the gender gap can raise incomes by 14% in Latin America and the Caribbean. Government officials also must root out corruption wherever it exists and promote transparency in official business that can prevent future corruption.
Peru's Minister of Education, Jaime Saavedra, was one of our top macroeconomists at the World Bank before he accepted his current position. As a brilliant economist, Jaime knew that Peru's future would depend on a more effective educational system. With former-President Humala's strong leadership, Peru has increased its education budget by 90% and important reforms are under way. Peru has also been a leader in investing in the health and well-being of women and children. It uses results-based financing to reward programs that produced better health, social development, and sanitation outcomes, and it targets assistance to those areas most in need, resulting in rapid progress in rural areas and the poorest communities. Latin America has set a high global standard for ensuring that people avoid poverty, and one of the best programs is Peru's Programa Juntos, which began a decade ago. Juntos has reached half a million poor families with conditional cash transfers worth USD38 dollars each month, based on regular health and nutrition checkups for young children.
When it comes to insuring people against risks, one of the most frightening threats is climate change. The warmer our planet becomes, the more we will experience droughts, floods, stronger hurricanes and typhoons, and brushfires that consume vast forests. There is in the Pacific right now the El Niño phenomena, which some are predicting to cause more havoc than any Niñicitos in generations. Ocean temperatures off the coast of Peru are as high as 6 degrees Celsius above normal. Led by countries around the world and funding from the multilateral development banks—including the World Bank Group—we are seeing that there is a politically credible pathway toward the USD100 billion promised ahead of the Paris Conference of the Parties. We will significantly scale up our commitments to battling climate change. In Lima, we focused on tough choices that will underpin growth, investment, and safety. Governments now must make tough choices in order to grow their economies in a way that helps the poorest. With every reform we make, with every road we build, with every health clinic we support—there are millions, even billions of people, who only want a chance to live and pursue their dreams. We must do all we can, together, to ensure that every person on this earth can live a more dignified, healthier, and more prosperous life.
THE LESSONS OF CARABAYLLO: MAKING TOUGH CHOICES
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Interview
Diego de Osma Ayulo, President of the Board of Directors and Chairman, Omnia Medica (Grupo de Osma)
TBY talks to Diego de Osma Ayulo, President of the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Board of Omnia Medica (Grupo de Osma), on introducing novelty, successful human resource management, and company goals for 2016.
read articleInterview
Jesús Tamayo Pacheco, Chairman, Supervisory Agency of Investment in Energy and Mining of Peru (Osinergmin)
TBY talks to Jesús Tamayo Pacheco, Chairman of the Supervisory Agency of Investment in Energy and Mining of Peru (Osinergmin), on the country's mining safety regulations, the largest energy project in Peru, and the body's future projects.
read articleInterview
Luis Andrés Montes Bazalar, Technical Secretary, Fund for Investment in Telecommunications (FITEL)
TBY talks to Luis Andrés Montes Bazalar, Technical Secretary of the Fund for Investment in Telecommunications (FITEL), on IT connectivity in Peru, challenges facing the sector, and increasing IT inclusion.
read articleInterview
Gonzalo Martin Ruiz Díaz, President, Telecommunications Regulatory Agency of Peru (OSIPTEL)
TBY talks to Gonzalo Martin Ruiz Díaz, President of the Telecommunications Regulatory Agency of Peru (OSIPTEL), on the state of telecoms in Peru, the role of the private sector in extending coverage, and the country's performance compared to regional counterparts.
read articleInterview
Edgar Patiño GarridoEdgar Patiño Garrido, President, National Port Authority (APN)
TBY talks to Edgar Patiño Garrido, President of the National Port Authority (APN), on the role of Peru's ports in the economy, the impact of the Panama Canal expansion, and efforts to tackle crime at ports.
read articleReview: Doing Business
Off the rock, the roots of prosperity
Despite the momentary slowdown from a dip in commodities prices, Peru remains just as promising a place to do business as any in Latin America. Diversification away from minerals, revamped special economic zones, and the narrow, unexpected victory of a Wall Street savant and committed infrastructural reformist mean that Peru looks to 2017 with bright eyes.
read articleReview: Legal
Rewarding Ends
Cesar Candela, Partner at Zavala Hernández & Candela Jara Abogados, discusses the role of investment in Peru's economic growth and how in order to raise funds it has established a stable and appealing legal framework for national and foreign private investment.
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