The Savior Town District
Distrito de Villa El Salvador (Spanish)
Flag of The Savior Town District
Coat of arms of The Savior Town District
Location of Villa el Salvador in Lima
Location of Villa el Salvador in Lima
Coordinates: 12°3′0″S 77°0′0″W / 12.05000°S 77.00000°W / -12.05000; -77.00000
Country Peru
RegionLima
ProvinceLima
Founded1971
CapitalCercado de Villa El Salvador
Government
  MayorGuido Iñigo
(2023–2026)
Area
  Total35.46 km2 (13.69 sq mi)
Elevation
143 m (469 ft)
Population
 (2023)[1]
  Total441,794
Time zoneUTC-5 (PET)
UBIGEO150142
Websitemunives.gob.pe

The Savior Town District is an urban, largely residential coastal district on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. It borders the district of Chorrillos on the east; the Pacific Ocean on the southwest; Lurín on the southeast; Villa María del Triunfo on the east and San Juan de Miraflores on the north.

History

Villa El Salvador began in 1971 as a squatted pueblo joven (or shanty town) in the vast, empty sand flats to the south of Lima because of the urgent housing needs of immigrant families who had left the sierra of central Peru. A land invasion quickly created a town of 25,000 people. By 2008, it had grown to 350,000 people.[2] Villa El Salvador evolved into a huge urban zone, largely self-organizing, for which it won some fame. Largely through the efforts of its inhabitants, the neighborhood was supplied with electricity, water, and sewage.

Villa El Salvador served as the home base for the activist María Elena Moyano, who helped organize the Federación Popular de Mujeres de Villa El Salvador (Fepomuves), a federation of women, which grew to encompass activities such as public kitchens, health committees, the Vaso de Leche program (which supplied children with milk), income-generating projects, and committees for basic education. Moyano was killed by members of the Shining Path, which used Villa El Salvador as a base in Lima.

Since June 1, 1983, Villa El Salvador has been formally (by law № 23605) established as a district within the Lima Province. In 1987, the community received a Prince of Asturias Award in recognition of its achievements. Villa El Salvador is twinned with Rezé, France and, since 2006, with Tübingen, Germany.

Authorities

Mayors

  • 2019–2022: Kevin Íñigo Peralta.
  • 2011–2014: Guido Íñigo Peralta.
  • 2003–2010: Jaime Zea Usca.
  • 1999–2002: Martín Pumar Vílchez.

Festivities

Twin towns

Historical slum photos

See also

References

  1. "Estadística Poblacional - Ministerio de Salud del Perú".
  2. Dosh, Paul (10 April 2008). "Incremental Gains: Lima's Tenacious Squatters' Movement". NACLA. Archived from the original on 10 August 2019. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
  3. "Sister cities - City of Tuebingen".
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