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on Development |
| By: | Alvaredo, Facundo; Bourguignon, François; Ferreira, Francisco H. G.; Lustig, Nora |
| Abstract: | Drawing on a comprehensive compilation of quantile shares and inequality measures for 34 countries, including over 5, 600 estimated Gini coefficients, we review the measurement of income inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean over the last seven decades. Although the evidence from the first quarter century – roughly until the 1970s – is too fragmentary and difficult to compare, clearer patterns emerge for the last fifty years. The central feature of these patterns is a broad inverted U curve, with inequality rising in most countries prior to the 1990s, and falling during the early 21st Century, at least until the mid-2010s, when trends appear to diverge across countries. This broad pattern is modified by country specificities, with considerable variation in timing and magnitude. Whereas this broad picture emerges for income inequality dynamics, there is much more uncertainty about the exact levels of inequality in the region. The uncertainty arises from the disparity in estimates for the same country/year combinations, depending on whether they come from household surveys exclusively; from some combination of surveys and administrative tax data; and on whether they attempt to scale income aggregates to achieve consistency with National Accounts estimates. Since no single method is fully convincing at present, we are left with (often wide) ranges, or bands, of inequality as our best summaries of inequality levels. Reassuringly, however, the dynamic patterns are generally robust across the bands. (Stone Center on Socio-Economic Inequality Working Paper) |
| Date: | 2023–11–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:7ckzg&r=dev |
| By: | Dang, Hai-Anh (World Bank); Hallegatte, Stephane (World Bank); Trinh, Trong-Anh (World Bank) |
| Abstract: | We offer an updated and comprehensive review of recent studies on the impact of climate change, particularly global warming, on poverty and inequality, paying special attention to data sources as well as empirical methods. While studies consistently find negative impacts of higher temperature on poverty across different geographical regions, with higher vulnerability especially in poorer Sub-Saharan Africa, there is inclusive evidence on climate change impacts on inequality. Further analyzing a recently constructed global database at the subnational unit level derived from official national household income and consumption surveys, we find that temperature change has larger impacts in the short term and more impacts on chronic poverty than transient poverty. The results are robust to different model specifications and measures of chronic poverty and are more pronounced for poorer countries. Our findings offer relevant inputs into current efforts to fight climate change. |
| Keywords: | climate change, temperature, poverty, inequality, subnational data |
| JEL: | Q54 I32 O1 |
| Date: | 2023–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16570&r=dev |
| By: | Stampini, Marco; Medellín, Nadin; Ibarrarán, Pablo |
| Abstract: | We assess the non-contributory cash transfer systems in 17 Latin American and Caribbean countries to identify factors that keep them from reducing poverty and inequality. To perform this assessment, we analyze three dimensions of size (number of beneficiaries, size of transfer per beneficiary, and size of total budget) and three dimensions of targeting (coverage, leakage, and quality of demographic targeting). We identify 67 programs, which fall into three broad categories: conditional cash transfers, non-contributory pensions, and other transfers. We use an international poverty line of 6.85 dollars PPP per day (similar to the average national poverty line of upper middle-income countries), and adjust survey weights to correct for the fact that household survey data often underestimates the official number of transfer beneficiaries compared to administrative sources. We show that two key factors limit the effect of cash transfer programs on poverty and inequality: the small size of their transfers and their historic undercoverage of the population living in poverty. Transfers represent approximately 33% of the poverty gap. Additionally, only 55% of the population in poverty benefits from these programs. Forty-one percent of people living in households that receive at least one non-contributory transfer are above the poverty line. Children and Indigenous people are underrepresented, relative to their poverty rate, in the rosters of beneficiaries. Brazil, Suriname, Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Panama, and Uruguay consistently earn the highest scores across the assessment categories. Our policy recommendations include: (i) intensifying efforts to increase coverage among the poor, using modern poverty mapping techniques along with active, on-the-ground searches and (ii) recertifying eligibility for transfer programs more frequently by using highly interoperable administrative data and social registries. Both efforts are needed to create more efficient income protection systems that address both structural and transient poverty. |
| Keywords: | cash transfer programs; conditional cash transfers; non-contributory pensions; coverage; leakage; targeting; social protection; Latin America and the Caribbean |
| JEL: | I38 H53 |
| Date: | 2023–11–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:120680&r=dev |
| By: | Elice, Paola; Martínez Flores, Fernanda; Reichert, Arndt R. |
| Abstract: | We examine the link between violent attacks of the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram, forced migration, and the empowerment of women in host communities. We find positive effects of distant attacks on the economic well-being of women, their use of modern contraceptive methods, and rejection of traditional gender views. At the same time, however, the findings show an increase in the risk that women experience domestic violence. We then examine forced displacement as a channel and its importance relative to other possible channels for the spatial effect dispersion. The results are different for Fulani pastoralist-farmer clashes over natural resources. |
| Keywords: | Boko Haram, Fulani, conflict, forced displacement, female labor force participation, employment, fertility, social norms, gender norms |
| JEL: | D74 J22 O12 O15 R23 |
| Date: | 2023 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:rwirep:279543&r=dev |
| By: | Amie M. Jobe; Roberto Ricciuti |
| Abstract: | Using the Economic Transformation Database, this paper attempts to assess the magnitude of structural transformation and the effects of sectoral shifts due to structural transformation on the labour market performance of 18 sub-Saharan African countries over the period from 1990 to 2018. The first part of this study examines some patterns of structural transformation in Africa, focusing on sectoral output shares, sectoral employment shares, and the relative labour productivity of sectors. We find that Africa is gradually advancing towards structural transformation but at a very slow speed. |
| Keywords: | Structural transformation, Employment, Labour market, Africa, Economic Transformation Database |
| Date: | 2023 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp-2023-138&r=dev |
| By: | Bove, Vincenzo (University of Warwick); Di Salvatore, Jessica (University of Warwick); Elia, Leandro (Marche Polytechnic University); Nistico, Roberto (University of Naples Federico II) |
| Abstract: | A considerable body of empirical evidence indicates that conflict affects reproductive behaviour, often resulting in an increased fertility rate due to higher child mortality and limited access to healthcare services. However, we know much less about the effect of peace in a post-conflict setting. This study explores how the external provision of security affects fertility by focusing on the UN intervention in Liberia. Combining DHS birth history data with information on road distance to UN military compounds, we find that women living in the proximity of peacekeepers have lower fertility rates in the deployment period. This is due to parents prioritizing quality over quantity: peacekeepers improve maternal and child health and encourage family planning by enabling donors and humanitarian actors to deliver infrastructures and services and facilitating citizens' access to such services. We also provide evidence that UN mission revitalizes local economic activities, thus increasing the opportunity cost of childbearing. |
| Keywords: | conflict, fertility, maternal health, child health, UN operations |
| JEL: | J16 J24 D74 F50 |
| Date: | 2023–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16569&r=dev |
| By: | Krista Ruffini; Orgül Öztürk; Pelin Pekgün |
| Abstract: | Many community organizations provide services similar to government programs, but there is limited evidence how increased government assistance affects the use of charitable services. We examine how greater access to federal nutritional aid through schoolwide free meal programs affects food bank use across the US’s largest food bank network. We find that a 10% increase in free school meal access reduces food bank utilization by 0.9-1.4%, without significantly reducing the amount of charitable resources available. The reduction of food bank use is only found in areas where relatively few students qualified for government aid prior to universal meals. |
| Keywords: | crowd-out, charitable donations, nutritional assistance, food banks |
| JEL: | H53 I00 J38 |
| Date: | 2023 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_10763&r=dev |