Managing Telecommunications When the Pandemic Hangs On: The Case of Peru on July 16, 2020

Regulators and utilities across the globe have been managing through the pandemic. Some countries have paid large economic costs for combatting the virus and are still being hit by surges. This even while other countries are recovering. How can these unfortunate countries cope?

We welcomed to Next Practices Live Dr. Roxana Barrantes and Mr. Juan Rivadeneyra to discuss how the telecom sector in Peru is addressing a severe economic downturn and a new surge of COVID-19. Peru was widely recognized for being proactive against the pandemic, but the economic cost was high: A 40% decline in GDP in April 2020. And recently the WHO has warned of continuing high cases, in part because Peru’s informal economy makes up 60% of the total economy. Our guests discussed how telecom operators and governments work on the challenges, the role telecoms has played in providing solutions, and the challenges of a large informal economy.

Dr. Barrantes is a professor of Economics at Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (PUCP). She has served in several senior governmental positions in Peru, including the Court Dispute Resolution of the Supervisory Agency for Investment in Public Transportation Infrastructure (OSITRAN) and the National Customer Protection Agency (INDECOPI). Her positions include Chief of staff for the Ministry of Energy and Mining of Peru, and member of the board of directors of the Peruvian Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (OSIPTEL).

Mr. Rivadeneyra oversees regulatory affairs in Peru for Claro, Latin America’s most prominent telecommunications company. He is also Chairman of the Telecommunications Committee of AFIN. He was previously with the National Superintendency of Public Registries (SUNARP) and then with OSIPTEL.