Global Poverty and Inequality : A Review of the Evidence

Ferreira, Francisco H.G. ; Ravallion, Martin

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: DISTRIBUTIONAL CHANGE;    GLOBAL POVERTY;    GROWTH;    GROWTH ELASTICITY;    INCOME INEQUALITY;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-4623
RP-ID  :  WPS4623

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Drawing on a compilation of data fromhousehold surveys representing 130 countries, many over aperiod of 25 years, this paper reviews the evidence onlevels and recent trends in global poverty and incomeinequality. It documents the negative correlations betweenboth poverty and inequality indices, on the one hand, andmean income per capita on the other. It points to thedominant role of Asia in accounting for the bulk of theworld's poverty reduction since 1981. The evolution ofglobal inequality in the last decades is also described,with special emphasis on the different trends of inequalitywithin and between countries. The statistical relationshipsbetween growth, inequality and poverty are discussed, as isthe correlation between inequality and the growth elasticityof poverty reduction. Some of the recent literature on thedrivers of distributional change in developing countries isalso reviewed.