Country overview: Peru

In the GSMA Intelligence Mobile for Development country overview series, we analyse the evolution and outlook of national mobile markets in the developing world. Each report covers a single country, combining data analysis with on-the-ground interviews to understand why that mobile market has developed as it has, and what the future holds. Covering themes of operator growth and competition dynamics, it provides analysis of indicators affecting adoption and usage, such as network coverage and investment, handsets, mobile data and value added services (VAS).

We particularly focus on operator attitudes to investing in VAS that aim to improve people’s lives in verticals such as health, education and finance. These "mobile for development" (M4D) VAS services are becoming increasingly important for operators in emerging markets, enabling them to forge customer loyalty with low-income, previously unconnected subscribers. With the projected rise in the number of people using mobile data over the next five years, forming such relationships now will be key to strengthening operators’ place in the data value chain in the future.

This country overview assesses Peru. In the country the mobile market has seen robust growth, with the rise in mobile broadband of particular note. Peru has been among the strongest growth economies in Latin America over the last 5 to 10 years and, while some of this has translated into improved socio-economic outcomes, there are still challenges. There is a significant opportunity for mobile to play a role in driving improvement and creating a positive social and economic impact, particularly driving access to financial services, employment and education. However, to realise this potential there is a need for a positive regulatory environment that fosters clarity in expanding the mobile network infrastructure to meet these challenges.