Covid: Why has Peru been so badly hit?

 

Peru has the highest Covid death rate as a proportion of the population in the world, according to the latest data.

Its official death toll has more than doubled after the criteria for recording Covid deaths were changed following a government review.

So why has Peru been affected so badly?

How many people have died?

Up until recently, deaths in Peru were only reported as Covid deaths if there was a positive test result to back it up.

But throughout the pandemic, excess death figures suggested that the real Covid death toll might be much higher.

Excess deaths account for how many more people are dying than would be expected based on the previous few years.

Since the start of the Covid outbreak, Peru has recorded around 150% more deaths than would be expected.