Thursday, January 30, 2025
12:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. EST
Peru's economic and political relationship with the United States has been characterized by strong trade ties and cooperation on insecurity, drug trafficking, and economic development. Since the implementation of the United States-Peru Free Trade Agreement in 2009, bilateral trade has increased, with the United States being one of Peru's largest trading partners. Peru's key exports to the United States include minerals such as copper, gold, and zinc; agricultural products like avocados, grapes, and quinoa; and other products such as fishmeal and seafood. However, tensions occasionally arise due to concerns over governance, human rights, and environmental practices, and most recently Peru's increasing economic cooperation with China, notably with the inauguration of the Chinese-owned Chancay port.
What will be the key issues in the relationship between Peru and the United States under a second Trump administration? Will the United States participate in President Dina Boluarte’s ambitious infrastructure plan, or will China expand its investments in the country? To address these and other key issues about the relationship between Peru and the United States, the Georgetown Americas Institute is pleased to host Peru’s ambassador, Alfredo Ferrero, who assumed his post in March 2024. The conversation will be moderated by GAI Managing Director Denisse Yanovich.
Featuring
Alfredo Ferrero has been the Peruvian ambassador to the United States since March 2024. He is an attorney and politician, specialized in commercial and corporate law, trade, arbitration, and negotiations. He obtained his law degree summa cum laude from the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru. He also earned a master’s degree in law from Harvard Law School in 1987 and obtained a certificate on the American legal system from Georgetown University. He served as minister of foreign trade and tourism from 2003 to 2006 and vice minister of international trade negotiations from 1999 to 2003. He has been in charge of the preparation and implementation of the strategic National Export Plan (PENX), the Strategic Tourism Plan (PENTUR), and the conclusion of negotiations with Thailand and Singapore, the first free trade agreements signed by Peru with countries from Asia. In April 2006, Ambassador Ferrero signed the United States-Peru Free Trade Agreement on behalf of Peru after three years of negotiations, obtaining approval by the Peruvian Congress in June of the same year. He has been a member of the board of directors of companies in diverse sectors and is author of the book Historias de un Desafio (Histories of a Challenge, 2017) which narrates the efforts to negotiate the free trade agreement with the United States.
Denisse Yanovich (moderator) is the managing director of the Georgetown Americas Institute. Prior to joining Georgetown she was the deputy to the president at the Inter-American Dialogue, a leading think tank on Latin America. She also worked at the Embassy of Colombia in Washington, managing their Public Diplomacy program, and Fedesarrollo, an economic policy think tank in Colombia, as a research associate. Yanovich holds a B.S. and M.A. in economics from Universidad de Los Andes in Bogotá and M.A. in art history from the Courtauld Institute of Art, University College, London.