Peru : Indicators

Peru has a Law on Transparency and Access to Public Information and specific regulations on implementation of transparency websites by public bodies; however, despite having made some progress, several government bodies still do not comply adequately with the stipulated standards, and the information they provide is still insufficient and incomplete. In April 2012, the Public Ombudsman proposed the creation of an Autonomous National Authority on transparency, which would be a great step forward when it is implemented. Read more...

A third preliminary version of the proposed National Forest Policy was updated in June 2010. This document has still not been approved, but it was published and made available on the General Directorate for Forests and Wildlife website. In May 2012 a guide was presented for strengthening of the forest sector, which includes drawing up a policy through a process of participation. Read more...

There is forest sector legislation and lower level regulations which implementation it into practice. A participative and inclusive process began in February 2012 for developing regulations of the new Forests and Wildlife Law approved in 2011. Read more...

The Free Trade Agreement with the USA, approved in 2006, included an annexe to motivate the process of updating forest legislation. There are also other Free Trade Agreements with Chile and China, and an Agreement was recently signed with the European Union on 26 June 2012. Read more...

Regulatory provisions on transparency for the forest sector are directly linked to the Law on Transparency and Access to Public Information, such as the Regulation on Transparency, Access to Public Environmental Information, and Citizen Participation and Consultation on Environmental Matters. Read more...

Law No. 29763, the new Forest and Wildlife Law (which will come into force when there is a regulation to implement it) incorporates principles not considered before, such as cross-cultural relations and respect for indigenous rights. In addition, article 78 of the Law states that the national authority recognises the concept of indigenous peoples’ forests and respect for their traditional knowledge of forest and wildlife use and management. Read more...

Law No. 29785 – the Law on the Right to Prior Consultation of the Indigenous or Native Peoples - requires there to be a consultation process before any legislative or administrative measure which might directly affect the indigenous populations and their collective rights. In addition, the new Forest Law No. 29763 also stipulates recognition and fulfilment of this right. One important area of progress in 2012 was the publication of the Guide to the Methodology for Strengthening of the Forest Sector, which stipulates the procedure for free, prior and informed consultation on the regulation of the new law. Read more...

There is express recognition of the right to free, prior and informed consultation to reach agreement or consent in Law No. 29763 – Forest and Wildlife Law (which will come into force when there is a regulation to implement it), and Law No. 29785 – Law on the Right to Prior Consultation of Indigenous or Native Peoples recognised in ILO Convention 169, approved in 2011. Read more...

There is no specific policy on land tenure, but there are policies applied to the agricultural sector and the forest sector. The Constitution states that natural resources are a national asset and the State has sovereign power over their use. Consequently, there is no private ownership of forest resources, but access is granted for their sustainable use. Read more...

To date there is no requirement making it compulsory to consult the interested parties (other than the forest owner) for the process of awarding forest concessions. Read more...

There is currently a draft law for regulation of environmental services: the Law on Provision of Environmental Services, which was brought back onto the Congress Agenda in the first months of 2012, but which has seen no further progress to date. However, there are other laws which complement it. Read more...

Peru has approved the National Environmental Action Plan 2011 to 2021, which contains provisions for actions and specific targets to strengthen the planning process through Territorial Planning and Economic and Ecological Zoning. The Law for the Environmental Impact Evaluation System makes it compulsory to use Strategic Environmental Assessment, and there is a proposal for a draft Ministerial Ruling which seeks to approve criteria and mechanisms for its formulation, implementation and tracking. Read more...

The General Directorate for Forests and Wildlife has published and made available to the public technical maps on rights granted, but this information is still not complete, generating uncertainty in the officially published information. However, the availability of thematic maps has improved in 2012. Read more...

There is a formal regulated system of operating permits, which are differentiated in law according to the method of access to the forest under: a. Authorisations; b. Permits; and c. Forest Concessions. The permits granted can only be accessed with a request for the information. Although the General Directorate for Forests and Wildlife does not publish these documents, in 2012 it made available Registers of Forest Concessions, which will help to identify the contracts. Read more...

There is currently no process, nor is one planned by law, to verify the technical and financial capacity of applicants for forestry permits; the only assessment carried out is whether the applicant meets the minimum conditions to enter into a contract with the State (having a Tax Identification Number; authorised representatives; a Management Plan; and others). Read more...

Despite the fact that each operating permit holder must draw up a final forest management plan, these are normally not complied with, and if they are then they are not made available to the public. Read more...

The Public Ombudsman is an autonomous body with decentralised offices nationwide which oversee the public administration’s compliance with its duties. Despite its work, as with OSINFOR, this is not an independent body, but an organisation depending on the State. Read more...

The redistribution of taxes and royalties – a system called the Forest Levy – in favour of the regional and local governments is developed in Levy Law No. 27506. Figures for the amounts collected and distributed are partially available on the websites of the Ministry of Agriculture, the National Institute of Statistics and Computerised Information and the Ministry of Economy and Finances. Read more...

Compared to previous years, directorial rulings indicating penalties and corresponding fines have been published. However, the list of offenders is still not published, which makes it difficult for citizens to identify individual offenders. Read more...

Despite the fact that the law requires the presentation of an Annual Report, the General Directorate for Forests and Wildlife only presents a statistical yearbook, which cannot be considered a complete report. Read more...