| GEOGRAPHY |
Peru is a large, mountainous
country on the Pacific coast of South America.
It has borders with Ecuador and Colombia
to the north, Brazil and Bolivia to the
east, and Chile to the south. The Pacific
Ocean lies to the west. There are three
natural zones, running roughly north to
south: Costa (Coast), Sierra (the Highlands)
and Selva (Amazonian Jungle). The Costa
region, which contains Lima (the capital)
is a narrow coastal plain consisting of
large tracts of desert broken by fertile
valleys. The cotton, sugar and rice plantations
and most of the so far exploited oil fields
lie in this area. The Sierra contains the
Andes, with peaks over 6000m (20,000ft),
most of the country's mineral resources
(silver, zinc, lead, copper and gold) and
the greater part of its livestock. The Selva,
an area of fertile, subtropical uplands,
lies between the Andes and the jungles of
eastern Peru. Sections of a proposed international
highway are at present being built through
it, with some sections already in use. The
Amazonian jungle of eastern Peru has vast
natural resources. The absence of land communications,
however, left the area largely uncharted
until full-scale oil exploration began in
1973. The population is largely Indian and
Mestizos with a noticeable influence from
European (mainly Spanish), Chinese and African
settlers. |
