Inequality, Growth, and Poverty in an Era of Liberalization and Globalization

Giovanni Andrea Cornia (, University of Florence)

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English

Oxford University Press
01 October 2004

Poverty & unemployment; Macroeconomics; International economics; Development economics

Series: WIDER Studies in Development Economics

Within-country income inequality has risen since the early 1980s in most of the OECD, all transitional, and many developing countries. More recently, inequality has risen also in India and nations affected by the Asian crisis. Altogether, over the last twenty years, inequality worsened in 70 per cent of the 73 countries analysed in this volume, with the Gini index rising by over five points in half of them. In several cases, the Gini index follows a U-shaped pattern, with the turn-around point located between the late 1970s and early 1990s. Where the shift towards liberalization and globalization was concluded, the right arm of the U stabilized at the 'steady state level of inequality' typical of the new policy regime, as observed in the UK after 1990.

Mainstream theory focusing on rises in wage differentials by skill caused by either North-South trade, migration, or technological change poorly explains the recent rise in income inequality. Likewise, while the traditional causes of income polarization-high land concentration, unequal access to education, the urban bias, the 'curse of natural resources'-still account for much of cross-country variation in income inequality, they cannot explain its recent rise.

This volume suggests that the recent rise in income inequality was caused to a considerable extent by a policy-driven worsening in factorial income distribution, wage spread and spatial inequality. In this regard, the volume discusses the distributive impact of reforms in trade and financial liberalization, taxation, public expenditure, safety nets, and labour markets. The volume thus represents one of the first attempts to analyse systematically the relation between policy changes inspired by liberalization and globalization and income inequality. It suggests that capital account liberalization appears to have had-on average-the strongest disequalizing effect, followed by domestic financial liberalization, labour market deregulation, and tax reform. Trade liberalization had unclear effects, while public expenditure reform often had positive effects.

Edited by: Giovanni Andrea Cornia ( University of Florence)
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 242mm, Width: 163mm, Spine: 30mm
Weight: 1g
ISBN: 9780199271412
ISBN 10: 0199271410
Series: WIDER Studies in Development Economics
Pages: 462
Publication Date: 01 October 2004
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Giovanni Andrea Cornia is currently professor of economics at the University of Florence. Before this, he was the Director of the World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU/WIDER) in Helsinki (1995-2000), and Director of the Economic and Social Policy Research Programme at the International Child Development Centre (the world-wide research centre of UNICEF) in Florence (1989-95). He was also the Chief Economist at UNICEF Headquarters in New York (1981-89) and held research positions at UNCTAD, UNECE (with a long spell at ECLAC in Santiago) and the Economic Studies Centre of FIAT.

Reviews for Inequality, Growth, and Poverty in an Era of Liberalization and Globalization

"`'..essential reading for anyone concerned with poverty reduction and the impact of current policy reforms'' Frances Stewart, Director, Queen Elizabeth House, University of Oxford `'...a valuable contribution to the important but still very limited body of serious analysis on the enormously important question of how liberalization and globalization affect people though their growth, distribution and poverty impacts. The volume addresses most of the key issues and, through the material it adds to the ongoing debates, will help to shift the balance of considered opinion away from the overoptimistic predictions of some of the cheer-leaders for liberalization and globalization to a more plausible middle ground. Such a shift is essential if these phenomena are to be appropriately controlled and harnessed for human betterment.'' Albert Berry, Professor, Department of Economics, University of Toronto `""An outstanding set of papers on the central challenge of our age: ambitious, analytically sound, and thoroughly grounded in real evidence. This volume deserves careful reading by all students of inequality and development.""' Nancy Birdsall, President, Center for Global Development `""this book is a well-researched, energetic and analytically adept multi-authored volume...""' Development and Change `Together they make a valuable collection of papers on linkages between inequality and/or trade with growth and/or povertyresearchers will find much of value in the volumes, and research students will find the reviews, methods and case studies informative and useful.' Journal of International Development"