Economic and Social Progress in Latin America: 1998-99 Report: Facing Up to Inequality in Latin America (Inter-American Development Bank) - Softcover

Development Bank, Professor Inter-American

9781886938366: Economic and Social Progress in Latin America: 1998-99 Report: Facing Up to Inequality in Latin America (Inter-American Development Bank)

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1886938369 ISBN 13: 9781886938366

Publisher: Inter-American Development Bank, 1998

Economic and Social Progress in Latin America is the most comprehensive resource guide available on the Latin American and Caribbean economies. The report features an annual assessment of economic and social trends, statistical profiles of regional and national economic performance, and year-by-year consolidated data for the past decade on population, national accounts, central government finances, balance of payments, and external debt.

The 1998 Report examines the dimensions of inequity in Latin America, which persists despite a decade of economic growth, macroeconomic stability, and free market economic policies. Poverty levels are unabated, salary gaps have widened, and social services in many countries remain inadequate.

The report looks at how income distribution and equity are affected by external forces such as globalization and capital flows, as well as by domestic factors like demographics, political economy, labor and family issues, and levels of state spending and efficiency. Policies are proposed to better distribute the benefits of development by reconciling universal and targeted approaches, and by examining public versus privatized delivery of social services such as education, health, and social security.

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Review:

Latin America in the 1990s remains the most unequal region in the world in terms of income distribution. Yet because of its demographics (declining fertility rates and large number of young people) the region now has a unique window of opportunity to reduce the income gap by accelerating the development process, putting people to work, improving education, and saving for the future. This report assembles the available evidence on inequality in order to test a wide range of explanations and remedies. How does income distribution vary within and across countries? Who are the region's rich and poor? How do families make decisions about children, work or schooling? The Report finds that inequality has less to do with political exclusion and more to do with geography, resources and how far along a country is on the development time line. -- From the Publisher

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