Productivity Growth, Poverty Reduction and Income Inequality: New Empirical Evidence

The minimum wage, as a labour market policy with distributive impact, is widely debated in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). This paper estimates the effect of increasing the minimum wage on poverty and income inequality in BiH, providing the first empirical evidence on the minimum wage in the country. Using data from the Household Budget Survey (HBS) for 2015, the effects of four changes (two per entity) in the minimum wage were simulated using the microsimulation model BiHMOD. First, the effect of the latest changes implemented in the previous period was calculated using the previous minimum wage level as the baseline. Second, the effect of recently proposed changes was simulated using the current level as the baseline. The findings suggest that increasing the minimum wage in BiH has a significant positive effect on poverty reduction, but a limited effect on the level of income inequality. The estimated effects were also calculated for different types of households. The results suggest that a single policy may have unexpected effects if other policies are not taken into account and harmonized accordingly. The findings provide empirical evidence for decision-makers and future policy debate, which is generally missing for this and similar policy issues in BiH.

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Does income inequality increase the shadow economy? Empirical evidence from Uganda

Development Studies Research ◽

10.1080/21665095.2021.1939082 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 147-160

Author(s):

Stephen Esaku

Keyword(s):

Income Inequality ◽

Empirical Evidence ◽

Shadow Economy

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Economic Dependence and Marginalization: Some Empirical Evidence

Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs ◽

10.2307/174908 ◽

1973 ◽

Vol 15 (1) ◽

pp. 36-45 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

William G. Tyler ◽

J. Peter Wogart

Keyword(s):

Income Inequality ◽

Empirical Evidence ◽

Careful Attention ◽

Economic Dependence ◽

Political Implications ◽

Capitalist World ◽

Developed World

One of the more recent and interesting contributions in the field of development has been the theory of dependence. This theory seeks to explain the most pressing problems of the less-developed world in terms of the relations between the developing and developed areas. Stagnation, unemployment, income inequality, and regional disequilibria are all seen as directly related to a less-developed country's position vis-à-vis the developed and capitalist world. Unfortunately, the theory of dependence has become something of a cause célèbre. It is either eagerly accepted or scornfully rejected as a matter of faith—primarily because of its political implications and overtones. Those who accept it embrace it willfully and rally to defend it against any possible detractors. Those who reject it generally choose to ignore it as either not serious or unworthy of careful attention and consideration.

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Mining, Poverty, and Income Inequality in Central and Eastern European Countries: What Do the Data Tell Us?

Comparative Economic Research ◽

10.18778/1508-2008.24.19 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 24 (3) ◽

pp. 7-25

Author(s):

Kunofiwa Tsaurai

Keyword(s):

Income Inequality ◽

Random Effects ◽

Poverty Reduction ◽

Common Ground ◽

European Countries ◽

Estimation Methods ◽

Eastern European ◽

Infrastructural Development ◽

Eastern European Countries ◽

The Impact

The study investigates the effect of mining on both poverty and income inequality in Central and Eastern European countries (CEECs) using econometric estimation methods with panel data spanning from 2009 to 2019. Another objective of this paper was to determine if the complementarity between mining and infrastructural development reduced poverty and or income inequality in CEECs. What triggered the study is the failure of the existing literature to have a common ground regarding the impact of mining on poverty and or income inequality. The existing literature on the subject matter is contradictory, mixed, and divergent; hence, it paves the way for further empirical tests. The study confirmed that the vicious cycle of poverty is relevant in CEECs. According to the dynamic generalized methods of moments (GMM), mining had a significant poverty reduction influence in CEECs. The dynamic GMM and random effects revealed that the complementarity between mining and infrastructural development also enhanced poverty reduction in CEECs. Random effects and pooled OLS shows that mining significantly reduced income inequality in CEECs. However, random effects and the dynamic GMM results indicate that income inequality was significantly reduced by the complementarity between mining and infrastructural development. The authorities in CEECs are therefore urged to implement mining growth and infrastructural development-oriented policies in order to successfully fight off the twin challenges of poverty and income inequality.

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Fair and Inclusive Markets

IMF Working Papers ◽

10.5089/9781513568669.001 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (29) ◽

Author(s):

Philippe Aghion ◽

Reda Cherif ◽

Fuad Hasanov

Keyword(s):

Income Inequality ◽

Empirical Evidence ◽

Poverty Alleviation ◽

Policy Options ◽

Growth Opportunities ◽

Market Structures ◽

Sustained Growth ◽

Market Income ◽

High Level ◽

Export Industries

We show empirical evidence that there may not be a tradeoff between market income inequality and high sustained growth, which is key for poverty alleviation. We argue that the economies that achieved high sustained growth and low market income inequality are characterized by dynamism—a drive toward sophisticated export industries, innovation, and creative destruction and a high level of competition. What a country produces and how much it competes domestically and internationally are important for achieving fair and inclusive markets. We explore policy options to steer industrial and market structures toward providing growth opportunities for both workers and firms.

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Minimum wages and inequality in Mexico

Handbook of BRICS and Emerging Economies ◽

10.1093/oso/9780198827535.003.0021 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 573-595

Author(s):

Alice Krozer ◽

Stefanie Garry ◽

Juan Carlos Moreno-Brid

Keyword(s):

Economic Development ◽

Income Inequality ◽

Minimum Wage ◽

Latin American ◽

Poverty Reduction ◽

Minimum Wages ◽

The Other ◽

Comparative Perspective ◽

The Status ◽

The Relationship

The literature on minimum wages in Mexico has focused largely on their impact on poverty, and poverty reduction, while their relationship with inequality has not been fully explored. The purpose of this chapter is to examine the status and dynamics of the minimum wage in Mexico and its relation with income inequality from a Latin American comparative perspective. In this context, we are mostly interested in juxtaposing the Mexican experience with the cases of Brazil, Argentina, and Chile, as three countries of roughly comparable economic development in the region pursuing labour policies diametrically opposing those of Mexico. In light of this Mexican exceptionality, we analyse the relationship between minimum wages and inequality in the country, and what Mexico could learn from the diverging experience of the other countries, with the aim of providing some recommendations to policymakers.

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