Description
Construction at Peru's Chinese-built mega port in Chancay, some 80 km away from the capital Lima, is almost completed and set to be inaugurated on 14 November by Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Peruvian counterpart, Dina Boluarte, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
"Our goal to become the Singapore of Latin America," Peru's Minister of Transport tells reporters during a visit to the port, which is set to create a direct shipping route from China to Latin America and reduce shipping times by at least 10 days. But residents of the town of Chancay, a seaside fishing town just meters away from the project, say the port doesn't serve them. "At most, 700 (direct, ed) jobs will be created. What we're going to see is total destruction," says one local resident, while another laments the economic "downturn" the town is already experiencing from the changes the port has brought. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES