Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism of the Republic of Peru
Blanca Magali Silva Velarde-Álvarez was born in 1966 in Lima.
Education
A professional economist, in 1982 she graduated from a private university, the Universidad del Pacífico in Lima, where she specialized in economics. In 1987 she gained a Master of Economics at the University of Oregon (USA), and attained a number of specialized courses at the IMF, the UN Economic Commission for Latin America, International Tourism Organization, Deutsche Bank, the Bank of Spain, and the US Department of Commerce.
Experience
Prior to joining the government of Ollanta Humala, Ms Velarde-Álvarez worked in various positions at the Central Reserve Bank of Peru:
1983-1989 – Analyst in the Department of Industrial Indicators
1989-1992 – Head of the Department of Industrial Indicators
1995-1999 – Head of the Department of Business Environment Research
2001-2008 – Head of the Department of Economic Development Indicators (formerly known as the Department of Industrial Indicators)
2008-2012 – Deputy Head of the Directorate of Macroeconomic Statistics.
May 2012-July 2013 – Deputy Minister of Industry of Peru, who oversees the sphere of small and medium enterprises and industry.
On July 24, 2013, Ms Velarde-Álvarez was appointed as Peru’s Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism.
Areas of Expertise
Economics
