Foreword

Economic regulators play an important role in the functioning of markets and ensuring the delivery of essential services in sectors such as energy, transportation, e-communications and water. As impartial referees, they balance functions to promote competition and protect consumers. They are expected to support regulatory frameworks that allow for stability, predictability and fairness, with the ultimate aim of improving sector outcomes.

To ensure regulators can achieve these complex and vital objectives, it is important to continuously assess their effectiveness and performance. This can lead to improvements to regulatory practices, frameworks and governance. It can also build confidence and trust in not just the regulator, but the system of public administration as a whole. To support regulators in this process, the OECD has developed the Performance Assessment Framework for Economic Regulators (PAFER) to assess organisational performance and governance structures, based on the OECD Best Practice Principles on the Governance of Regulators. The framework analyses regulators’ internal and external governance, including their organisational structures, behaviour, accountability, processes, reporting and performance management, as well as role clarity, relationships and distribution of powers and responsibilities with other government and non-government stakeholders.

In 2019, the OECD published the report Driving Performance at Peru’s Telecommunications Regulator, based on the PAFER review of Peru’s Supervisory Agency for Private Investment in Telecommunications (Organismo Supervisor de Inversión Privada en Telecomunicaciones, OSIPTEL) carried out in 2018. In 2022, OSIPTEL invited the OECD to conduct a progress review to track and comment on their efforts to implement the recommendations covering the period from 2019 to 2022.

The review highlights that OSIPTEL has made good progress in key areas including improving the regulatory fee setting process, resolving consumer complaints, implementing a framework for regulatory impact assessments (RIAs) and reinstating a users’ council. A number of areas of opportunity for improvement still exist. To continue to drive progress in the Peruvian telecommunications sector, OSIPTEL should aim to further clarify its role as a regulator, promote diversity in its decision-making processes, and seek innovative approaches to delivering on its mandate.

This report is part of the OECD work programme on the governance of regulators and regulatory policy, led by the OECD Network of Economic Regulators (NER) and the OECD Regulatory Policy Committee (RPC), with the support of the Regulatory Policy Division of the OECD Directorate of Public Governance. The Directorate’s mission is to help government at all levels design and implement strategic, evidence-based and innovative policies that support sustainable economic and social development. The report was presented to the NER for comments at its 19th meeting in December 2022.