The government of Peruvian President Pedro-Pablo Kuczynski aims to ramp up a tax swap system that has already awarded hundreds of millions of dollars in infrastructure projects.
The finance ministry is working with eight ministries, regional and local governments, the comptroller’s office and state agency to promote private investment (Proinversión) to find ways to implement more of the projects known as obras por impuestos, Proinversión said in a statement.
Proinversión, ministries and regional governments will present their project portfolio at a September 30 event, the agency said. The tax swap system has awarded 225 transport, health, education and water infrastructure projects totaling 2.25bn soles (US$660mn) since 2009, according to Proinversión.
Proinversión and the housing & construction and finance ministries are also tackling bureaucratic obstacles to US$1.50bn in potable water and sewerage projects in eight of the country’s regions, said the housing ministry’s director for housing policy Luis Tagle.
The projects are located in Apurímac, Cusco, Junín, Lima, La Libertad, Piura, Puno and Tumbes, Tagle told state news agency Andina. The government has issued a regulation that modifies Law 29090 regulating urban edifications that prohibits municipal governments from including investor requisites not established by law, Tagle said.
The ministry has also calculated a housing deficit of 1.2mn homes in 36 cities around the country which will require 7,600ha of land over the next five years, he said. There are 12 priority cities: Tumbes, Talara, Piura, Chiclayo, Trujillo, Lima, Pisco, Ica, Arequipa, Ilo, Iquitos and Huancayo, where 826,637 homes are to be built, while the Chavimochic project is to feature 150,000 homes, Tagle said.
Kuczynski, who took office July 28, has pledged to work to eliminate all bureaucratic obstacles to US$25bn in delayed infrastructure projects within six months.
Source: BNamericas.com
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