Huancayo Peru-

Huancayo, Peru is located seven hours east of the capital city of Lima. Positioned in the Peruvian Highlands, Huancayo sits at an elevation of 3200 meters (10,600 ft) above sea level.

Huancayo is home to almost 250,000 Andean people who have come from the surrounding rural areas looking for work. Though a sprawling market town, Huancayo is in close proximity to many rural communities giving it a very “traditional” feel, bustling with locals in traditional dress.

Positioned high in the Andes, Huancayo is visited by few tourists and does not have the economic advantages of other areas. Our project work includes Huancayo as well as other rural villages around the Mantaro Valley.

 

Challenges facing Peruvians:
In the early 1980’s, guerilla fighters from the terrorist group, Sendero Luminoso ( The Shining Path) to gained economic and political power in the Peruvian Central Highlands through violence. The countryside became dangerous and common citizens were forced to move to the city where minimal military control existed. This unwelcome transition created homelessness and poverty, and cut the area off economically and socially from the rest of the world. The Sendero Luminoso killed over 70,000 people between 1981 and 2004. They also Assassinated many specific leaders in local, regional, and national government which lead to a brutal governmental response where many innocent citizens were tortured, raped, or killed.
In the late 1990’s, the Peruvian government was able to remove the guerilla strongholds and restore the area to safety. Even though peace has come to Huancayo, there are still thousands of children and adolescents living below poverty and without means to a basic education. Education and healthcare are not free in Peru and most people can not afford schooling or medical attention on meager incomes, commonly less than $28 a week.