The Debate on Globalization, Poverty, and Inequality : Why Measurement Matters
In the last year or so, markedly different claims have been heard within the development community about just how much progress is being made against poverty and inequality in the current period of "globalization." Ravallion provides a no...
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| Language: | English en_US |
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World Bank, Washington, DC
2014
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2003/05/2340133/debate-globalization-poverty-inequality-measurement-matters http://hdl.handle.net/10986/18207 |
| Summary: | In the last year or so, markedly
different claims have been heard within the development
community about just how much progress is being made against
poverty and inequality in the current period of
"globalization." Ravallion provides a nontechnical
overview of the conceptual and methodological issues
underlying these conflicting claims. He argues that the
dramatically differing positions taken in this debate often
stem from differences in the concepts and definitions used
and differences in data sources and measurement assumptions.
These differences are often hidden from view in the debate,
but they need to be considered carefully if one is to
properly interpret the evidence. The author argues that the
best available evidence suggests that if the rate of
progress against absolute poverty in the developing world in
the 1990s is maintained, then the Millennium Development
Goal of halving the 1990 aggregate poverty rate by 2015 will
be achieved on time in the aggregate, though not in all
regions. He concludes with some observations on the
implications for the more policy-oriented debates on
globalization and pro-poor growth. |
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