1 / 18

Inequality: Why Does it Matter; How Does it Differ to Focussing on Poverty?

Inequality: Why Does it Matter; How Does it Differ to Focussing on Poverty?. Duncan Green Oxfam GB Ambedkar University November 2013. What do we mean by Poverty?. Absolute v Relative income Multidimensional – narrow ( eg Human Development Index) Asking Poor People (Voices of the Poor)

feoras
Download Presentation

Inequality: Why Does it Matter; How Does it Differ to Focussing on Poverty?

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Inequality: Why Does it Matter; How Does it Differ to Focussing on Poverty? Duncan Green Oxfam GB Ambedkar University November 2013

  2. What do we mean by Poverty? • Absolute v Relative income • Multidimensional – narrow (eg Human Development Index) • Asking Poor People (Voices of the Poor) • Well/ Ill being • Static v Dynamic – fear of tomorrow

  3. What’s happening to income poverty?

  4. What do we mean by inequality? • Income • Opportunity: soft and hard versions • Outcomes • Multidimensional inequality • Vertical v Horizontal (spatial) • Intergenerational (temporal) • Measurement: Gini v deciles • Power

  5. Inequality is a rising concern

  6. Shared by just about everybody • IMF links to major financial crises (rich elites recycling $) and social cohesion • World Bank highlights how much harder it is to end poverty in unequal countries (eg South Africa) • Stiglitz linking to political capture and positive feedback loops from influence • Planetary boundaries and the finite cake • Behavioural economics and link to well-being

  7. What’s happening to global income inequality? • Global Gini improving due to rise of BRICS • Global extremes getting worse • 100 richest people = 4x poorest 1.4bn • Gini within countries mixed • Deteriorating in all but 4 G20 countries • But improving in many non-G20 countries, eg in Latin America

  8. Globally, it’s the 2%

  9. G20 doing badly

  10. And good and bad performers converging

  11. Brazil v the RICS

  12. Brazil’s success story on inequality • Over last decade, incomes of the poorest Brazilians have risen more than x5 faster than those of the richest • Hunger ‘largely dealt with’ • Cf New Deal or post War UK • Women > men • Blacks > whites • Northeast > Southeast

  13. Cutting inequality needs much more than social protection • Rights-based constitution • Centre-left government • Full employment • Rising minimum wage, universal pension • An integrated and effective public administration • A high level of public participation • Political and economic stability

  14. Gabriel Palma the most interesting • Deciles tell you more than Gini (Convergence) • In all countries, deciles 5-9 have (and keep) about 50% of wealth • Rest is up for grabs between top 10% and bottom 40% • Key political question is whether middle class allies with top or bottom

  15. What might an NGO inequality agenda look like? • Structures matter (oil v jobs) • Taxation – quantity and quality • Ceilings v floors (eg land) • Redistribution > income (eg tertiary ed = 16% social spending in Brazil) • More on attitudes and beliefs: gender, but also caste, ethnicity, children, disability • Focus on inequality between or within countries?

  16. Oxfam India on Inequality • Income • Missing Jobs, Low Wages and Discrimination • Education & Health • Public v Private • To Have or Not a Toilet • About Networks and Chances • Rents and Redistribution

  17. Thanks!

More Related