Peru’s richest 1% captures over 40 percent of new wealth as public concern grows over concentration of power in hands of powerful few

The richest 1 percent of Peruvians captured 42 percent of all new wealth created between 2019 and 2025, while the poorest 50 percent of the population got 1.4 percent, reveals new analysis by Oxfam.

The findings come as Oxfam and the Institute for Peruvian Studies co-publish the 2026 National Survey on Perceptions of Inequalities (in Spanish, ENADES 2026), which finds that a majority (84 percent) of Peruvians believe the country is governed by powerful groups for their own benefit – primarily political elites, large corporations, and other economic actors.

“Economic inequality in Peru has remained stubbornly high for decades. And when people feel that the same people always win, that nothing changes and nothing can change, inequality starts to look less like an injustice and more like the natural order of things. That is a dangerous kind of fatalism, and we must tear it down,” said Oxfam in Peru Executive Director Alejandra Alayza.

The survey paints an unvarnished picture of public disillusionment across the country:

• 72 percent of Peruvians believe their country is very or somewhat unequal.
• 57 percent of Peruvians think that the gap between the richest and the poorest has become too wide.
• 38 percent of Peruvians believe that even if a person works hard their entire life, they will never become rich.

These perceptions reflect a stark concentration of income and wealth at the top. Between 2019 and 2025, the average income of a Peruvian in the top 0.1 percent increased by 16 percent, while the average income of someone in the poorest half of the population decreased by 8 percent. Globally, Peru has the second-highest concentration of income in the hands of the richest 0.1 percent.

Today, the average wealth of a Peruvian in the top 0.1 percent is 4,800 times that of someone in the bottom 50 percent. Peru’s richest man holds more wealth than the poorest 40 percent of the country's population combined. His fortune increased by 75 percent in real terms over the past 12 months, and by 285 percent over the past five years.

The survey also reveals how strongly Peruvians connect economic inequality with unequal power and opportunity:

• 77 percent believe the richest individuals find ways to avoid paying their fair share of taxes, while 76 percent say the same of large corporations.
• The majority views access to justice (86 percent), healthcare (81 percent), education (74 percent), and employment (75 percent) as unequal.
   

Finally, the survey shows that 7 out of 10 Peruvians think the government needs to implement measures to reduce inequality.

“The undeniable scale of public support for action to reduce inequality leaves no room for complacency. Inequality is not a force of nature – it is made by political choices. And different choices can build a different Peru,” said Alayza.