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POVERTY AND INCOME INEQUALITY IN LATIN AMERICA DURING THE 1980s
Author(s) -
Psacharopoulos George,
Morley Samuel,
Fiszbein Ariel,
Lee Haeduck,
Wood William C.
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
review of income and wealth
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.024
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1475-4991
pISSN - 0034-6586
DOI - 10.1111/j.1475-4991.1995.tb00119.x
Subject(s) - poverty , economics , latin americans , inequality , economic inequality , development economics , recession , income distribution , income inequality metrics , demographic economics , economic growth , political science , macroeconomics , mathematical analysis , mathematics , law
On average, poverty and income inequality increased in Latin America during the 1980s. Forty‐six percent of the increase in poverty took place in the cities of Brazil alone, though part of this reflects the migration of poor rural inhabitants to urban areas. There is strong evidence that both income inequality and poverty mirrored the economic cycle, rising during recession and falling during recovery. Economies that grew (e.g. Colombia, Costa Rica) performed better with respect to poverty and income inequality than those that stagnated. In particular, countries that failed to stabilize effectively (e.g. Brazil, Peru) experienced substantial increases in poverty. Educational attainment has the greatest correlation with both income inequality and the probability of being poor. From a policy standpoint, there is a clear association between the provision of education, lessening of income inequality, and poverty reduction.