[{"bbox": [113, 151, 1076, 332], "category": "Text", "text": "and deficiencies of its health and social protection system. On top of this, the social security and social protection covers less than a quarter of the Peruvian population since, around 80 percent⁴ of the country labor force belong to the informal sector, and therefore do not have access to public social protection schemes. Informal workers, being employed or self employed, do not pay income taxes, thus leaving the tax effort to 8% of the active population and limiting the scope of the capacity of the state to reach out to the most vulnerable segments of the population."}, {"bbox": [113, 345, 1076, 524], "category": "Text", "text": "The 2023 Household Survey⁵ (ENAHO) of the National Statistics Institute (INEI) reveals that monetary poverty in 2023 increased by 1.5 percent compared to 2022, affecting 29 percent of the population (his translates into 9.78 million Peruvians living in poverty, with 446 soles ($125) or less a month), whilst extreme poverty is at 5.7 percent. In the urban area, 26 percent of the population is poor, which is an increase of 2.3 percent compared to 2022. It is a long way to go before reverting to pre-pandemic poverty rates."}, {"bbox": [113, 542, 1076, 815], "category": "Text", "text": "According to the IMF, growth has remained low at 2.4 percent in 2023, continuing a down turn, which started in 2022. After a short pandemic recovery, projected tight external conditions and high political uncertainties nationwide are not expected to be conducive to higher growth rates in 2024. However, growth is expected to return to its potential of 3 percent in the subsequent years, partly due to the potential exploitation of the immense natural and mineral resources of the country, its geopolitical location and cheap human workforce. Inflation is expected to decline, remaining one of the lowest in the region. Peru's very strong economic fundamentals, a sustained track record in implementing effective macroeconomic policies and a very conservative/prudential management of ample international reserves have helped the country absorbing adverse shocks in recent years, whilst sustaining financial stability."}, {"bbox": [113, 829, 1076, 1010], "category": "Text", "text": "Peru is a rich country with lots of poor people. That is why structural reforms, especially those aiming at increasing job formalization, productivity and expanding social protection are needed to ensure that growth is more broad-based, inclusive and mainstreamed with the international agenda and global values of the Sustainable Development Goals (especially in relation to objective 8 \"*Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all*\" and with the OECD recommendations (Committee for Employment, Work and Social Issues)."}, {"bbox": [113, 1024, 1076, 1419], "category": "Text", "text": "Social protection is a human right anchored in the Sustainable Development Goals and formal employment and decent jobs are recognized as fundamental to provide social cohesion, reduce inequalities and promote sustainable and inclusive growth. Besides, the prevalence of the informal economy and non-standard forms of employment are recognized as being among the most significant factors in rising instability, inflation and insecurity trough money laundering and the financing of criminal organizations. As stated in the ILO recommendation for the transition from informal to the formal economy (R204), formal employment allow the creation of a level playing field where businesses can compete fairly because they all share the same costs linked with formality of businesses. Therefore, strengthening the formal economy has an important impact on fair competency with EU products and trading as well as on reducing the crime space for money laundering and tax evasion. The OECD accession process initiated by Peru in 2023 provides a roadmap for an ambitious and well-articulated structural reform agenda. The OECD \"Economic Survey Peru\" identifies the need to reduce informality as the most urgent priority to promote social cohesion and reduce inequalities, which is a key driver for the accession agenda."}, {"bbox": [113, 1433, 1076, 1523], "category": "Text", "text": "According to the OECD, Peru has one of the highest level of informality in America Latina, with around 80 percent of workers in informal jobs (that is about 13.4 million people), having limited access to health services and none to social protection and pensions. This high informality is a fundamental factor"}, {"bbox": [85, 1568, 421, 1593], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁴ OECD Economic Survey Peru, 2023"}, {"bbox": [85, 1603, 717, 1630], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁵ Encuesta Nacional de Hogares, 2023, National Statistics Institute (INEI)"}, {"bbox": [1034, 1679, 1143, 1705], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 5 of 29"}]