Shared Prosperity : Concepts, Data, and Some Policy Examples
"Shared prosperity" has become a common phrase in the development policy discourse. This short paper provides its most widely used operational definition -- the growth rate in the average income of the poorest 40 percent of a country'...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2018
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/881491526993639155/Shared-prosperity-concepts-data-and-some-policy-examples http://hdl.handle.net/10986/29861 |
| Summary: | "Shared prosperity" has become
a common phrase in the development policy discourse. This
short paper provides its most widely used operational
definition -- the growth rate in the average income of the
poorest 40 percent of a country's population -- and
describes its origins. The paper discusses how this notion
relates to well-established concepts and social indicators,
including social welfare, poverty, inequality, and mobility,
and reviews some of its design shortcomings. The paper then
looks at household survey data to assess recent progress in
this indicator globally. The analysis finds that during
2008–13, mean incomes for the poorest 40 percent rose in 60
of 83 countries. In 49 of them, accounting for 65 percent of
the sampled population, it rose faster than overall average
incomes. Finally, the paper briefly reviews a
(non-exhaustive) range of 'pre-distribution' and
'redistribution' policies with a sound empirical
track record of raising productivity and well-being among
the poor, thus contributing to shared prosperity. |
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