About Lima

Lima, city in west central Peru, is the capital and largest city of the country, located on the Pacific Ocean and adjacent to the Rimac River in Peru's arid coastal region. Lima is the political, economic, and cultural center of Peru. Its importance within the nation is so overwhelming that some scholars suggest there are two Perus: Lima and the rest of the country. Lima's metropolitan area has a population of 6.4 million, accounting for close to one-third of the nation's total and a similar proportion of the country's workforce. The concentration of wealth and power in Lima is even more intense: The city accounts for more than two-thirds of the nation's gross domestic product, tax collections, bank deposits, private investment, physicians, and university students. Despite recent efforts at decentralization, Lima is still the base for almost all government agencies.