The objective of this essay is simply to draw the profile of the evolution of poverty and inequality, in their various dimensions, over the recent period – ideally the last two decades. However, the profile should not be limited to finding the right figures, drawing two or three charts and commenting on their shapes. It should also rely on telling the macro-economic, and possibly the macro-social, story of the country during the period of analysis. Major shocks have hit most economies of the word in the last 20 years, including the 2008-9 great recession, the COVId-19 pandemic, and more recently the rise of inflation. It is not necessarily the case that these events had a direct and significant effect on poverty and inequality, but the question must be asked of whether this is the case, and, if it is not, what may explain this absence. ON the other hand, the existence of trends in poverty and inequality requires explanation.
You are free to choose the country you want to study. However, your choice will depend on the kind of data and macro-economic country review available. To help you on the poverty and inequality side, the full World Bank data base is provided in attachment with the present document. You could also visit the following sites: WID (World Inequality Database) and the World Income Inequality Database at WIDER.
Macro-economic reviews are periodically undertaken by the International Monetary Fund under Article IV of its agreement (documents are labeled Article IV reports on the IMF site). You may also look at the bi-annual World Economic Outlook Reports of the IMF, which comes with an appendix on countries or regions. The OECD country reviews are also a helpful source but cover only developed countries. The Economist Intelligence Unit is another interesting reference which covers practically all countries in the world.
Of course, I am at your disposal to gather more references once you’ll have decided which country you want to study.
Essay should not be longer than 14,000 characters (including spaces, but excluding charts)
Please cite figures and cite everything with APA7. please include charts and everything. please label all the figures and make everything clear and good. please cite everything.
