Piura struggles with low budget execution for El Niño prevention

Piura faces significant challenges in disaster prevention due to low budget execution rates despite being highly vulnerable to the El Niño Phenomenon (FEN). According to Germán Vega, an economist from the Red de Estudios para el Desarrollo (Redes), the region ranks 22nd in budget execution for Program 0068, which funds river defenses, risk studies, and emergency equipment.

Similar execution issues are reported in Cusco, where the Regional Government and municipalities spent only 33% of their prevention budget by the end of the first half of 2026. Furthermore, the overall budget for these prevention programs has decreased since 2023, now representing only half of previous levels. A significant portion of available funds—approximately 68%—is diverted to current expenses such as salaries and services, leaving less for infrastructure. Notably, Midagri has recorded 0% execution of its assigned 71 million soles. Vega noted that over the last decade, 1.5 billion soles intended for emergency response remained unused, a sum eight times larger than the projected 2026 budget.