Catholic Schools in Peru: Elites, the Poor, and the Challenge Of Neoliberalism

Located in the heart of the Andes, Peru, with over 28 million inhabitants in 2006, is characterized by sharp geographical contrasts and a wide variety of cultures and languages. Almost twice the size of Texas, Peru has three clearly distinguishable regions: the Andes mountain range, the Amazon jungle, and the coast. The Andes build up from the coast and slope down into the Amazon jungle in the east. In the south, they stretch out and turn into a large fl at altiplano that covers most of southeastern Peru and borders on Bolivia. Lake Titicaca is shared by both countries. Most of the Andean inhabitants speak Quechua, the lingua franca of the Inca empire. The other major Indian language of Peru is Aymara, spoken in the southern Altiplano and in Bolivia. The coast is a thin line running from Ecuador to Chile in the south. A largely barren desert, it is irrigated by rivers and streams that come down from the mountains. The coastal cities are largely white and mestizo. The capital, Lima, is a sprawling metropolis with over 7 million inhabitants. It has grown dramatically since World War II when it had around 600,000 inhabitants. The Amazon region comprises 61% of Peru’s territory. It is home for a million and a half inhabitants who include colonizers from the coast and numerous native tribes which speak 12 different languages, unrelated to either Quechua or Aymara.