The implementation of the Center of Interpreting and Translation in indigenous languages in Peru during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has unveiled the importance of proper communication for public health, especially in multilingual contexts where speakers of minority languages have not had proper access to information in their languages, like indigenous peoples. Different approaches have been taken at national, regional, and local levels in this regard. In Peru, the COVID-19 pandemic enhanced the need for a government-driven provision of translation and interpreting in indigenous languages, especially in health care services. To that end, the Peruvian Government created a Centre of Interpreting and Translation in Indigenous Languages, a leading experience in the region. This paper aims at providing an overview of its implementation process through the analysis of the regulations behind it and the provided assistance a year after being launched to try to identify the possible implications of such implementation on how public service interpreting and translation in indigenous languages can move towards an articulated model of government-driven language services.