Out-dated infrastructure in Peru’s highly centralized seaport system is a major challenge facing the country’s supply network, according to the Foreign Commerce Society of Peru, Comex Peru. An article by Comex, which appeared in daily Gestión today, stressed the need for modernizing the ports so Peru can sustain its sizzling economic growth and become an economic leader in South America.
While Peru’s Finance Ministry reported economy growth of more than eight percent last year, development at its seaports has not kept pace. According to Comex, customs officials at the ports still do not electronic devices for such basic procedures as filling out merchandise declarations. This has caused a bottleneck of merchandise, which is impeding the competitiveness of Peruvian exporters.
Necessary infrastructure changes to improve the supply network, and take advantage of the U.S.-Peru free trade agreement, include increasing storage zones, providing updated technology and improving Peru’s regional ports, which would help to decentralize the system. The Public Port of Callao accounted for 56 percent of the country’s seaport operations in 2006, Comex said. Other major South American seaports, like Chile’s Valparaíso and Colombia’s Cartagena, reported around 15 percent of their national port operations.
