The changing face of Lima
It is more than 470 years since Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro founded “the City of the Kings” in South America. Today, it is better known as Lima – a sprawling and vibrant west coast metropolis, overlooking the Pacific Ocean, which has been the country’s capital since the Peruvian War of Independence in 1821.
It was another century, however, before drinking water and sewage systems were introduced. And so began Lima’s rapid expansion. In the two decades to 1960 its population doubled to 1.2 million and that number doubled again by 1980.
This influx of new people, mostly from the poor rural areas of Peru, overwhelmed the public services and gave rise to large shanty towns, known as pueblos jøvenes. These are still a feature of modern-day Lima, alongside impressive new architecture.
The continued growth of Lima has been phenomenal and today it is home to over nine million people – one third of the country’s population – with all the problems that such a huge and diverse community creates. But Limareans are optimists at heart, and with good reason. In the past five years, 10 per cent of the city’s residents have emerged from poverty.
This reflects Peru’s new prosperity, based largely on its growing export market. Annual exports have trebled over the past five years and are expected to reach a record US$27 billion this year, helped by higher metal prices but also by the increasing diversity of its products.
The country is enjoying its most sustained period of economic growth since the 1950s: its gross domestic product expanded eight per cent last year, giving rise to a new middle class. Huge new shopping malls have been created, elegant restaurants flourish along the coast, and five-star hotels reflect the new wealth that exists not only in the capital but also in he new urban developments that have sprung up around the city.
Fortunately, Peru believes in preserving its colourful past, including churches and museums, of which the one dedicated to its association with gold probably attracts the most visitors. Mario Testino – renowned as a fashion photographer and famous for his portraits of Diana, Princess of Wales, and Hollywood celebrities – recently edited 'Lima, Peru', a book that sees the city in which he lived his early life through the eyes of its artists and photographers. “I’m very proud to be Peruvian,” he said at the book’s launch earlier this year. “I wouldn’t want to be from anywhere else.” He produced the book, he added, because “I wanted to capture Lima’s positive chaos… its colour and complexity.”
Peru’s large copper and zinc deposits, on which many of its exports depend, are to be mined more rapidly. Among investments in this sector is an agreement with Brazil’s Votorantim, signed by Peru’s president Alan Garcia in September 2007, for the US$500 million expansion of a zinc refinery in Lima.
And another vital income generator – tourism – has not been overlooked. The Magical Water Tour, consisting of 13 ornamental fountains, is now a major attraction in Lima’s Parque de la Reserva. Together they provide visitors, including the city’s residents, with a colourful show combining colour, lighting and music.
For G4S Security Services (Peru), with its headquarters in Lima, the country’s economic improvements re good news. Having had a presence in Peru since 1982, it is now market leader in security services, providing integrated solutions to a wide range of retail, commercial and industrial customers in the capital, as well as in other parts of the country.
In addition, its extensive cash logistics services look after the transportation and processing of cash for the banking and retail sectors, among others. Fire-fighting and fire-prevention, aviation security, alarm monitoring, access control and data storage are among the other services offered in G4S Peru’s extensive portfolio.
It even has a laboratory for the maintenance of customers’ fire extinguishers, a polygraph department which offers specialist examination services to determine the truth or otherwise of statements that are made, and Securetrip – vehicle location via satellite tracking. G4S Security Services (Peru)is focused on contributing to the security and safety of its customers and their assets with a combination of human skills and technology.
As Lima looks forward to continued growth and prosperity, G4S Security Services (Peru) will not only benefit from the improving economy but will also continue to make its own valuable contribution.
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The changing face of Lima
