Beatriz Merino

Martha Beatriz Merino Lucero (born November 15, 1947, Peru) was the first female Prime Minister of Peru. Merino served as Prime Minister from 23 June 2003 to 15 December 2003. Merino currently serves as the national ombudsman for Peru, a position also known as the defender of the people. She is the third person to hold the position (the first title holder was Jorge Santistevan and his successor, in an interim position, was Walter Albán).

Beatriz Merino Lucero became the prime minister of Peru in 2003, the highest political rank ever held by a woman in the history of Peru. Merino held office between June 23, 2003 and December 12, 2003. In Peru, she studied Law at National University of San Marcos. She graduated from Harvard University with a master’s degree in law, becoming the first Peruvian woman to graduate from Harvard Law School. She also obtained an LLM degree from the London School of Economics in 1974. Merino was director of the Women’s Leadership Program at the Inter-American Development Bank to support and finance projects to enhance women’s leadership in Latin America. She also worked as a lawyer at the law firm Estudio Merino and Reano, where she worked extensively in commercial, labor, corporate and environmental legislation.