Human Capital Spending, Inequality, and Growth in Middle-Income Asia

Abrigo, Michael R.M.; Lee, Sang-Hyop; Park, Donghyun

doi:10.22617/wps179176-2

Cited by 4 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 8 publications

(13 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…For instance, Altunbaş and Thornton (2019) argued that financial development is an important driver of income inequality, which decreases income inequality in upper-middle-income economies but increases income inequality in low-and high-income economies. Abrigo, Lee et al (2018) indicated that human capital investments improve income equity in Asia. Jaumotte, Lall et al (2013) found that average years of schooling have an increasing effect on income inequality in a sample of 51 countries.…”

Section: Determinants Of Income Inequality: a Short Summarymentioning

confidence: 99%

An inquiry into the nexus between energy poverty and income inequality in the light of global evidence

2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Section: Determinants Of Income Inequality: a Short Summarymentioning

confidence: 99%

An inquiry into the nexus between energy poverty and income inequality in the light of global evidence

2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…In the literature of economic development, human development also in turn contributes to economic growth and structural transformation (Bye & Faehn 2022;Fleisher et al 2010;Siddiqui & Rehman 2017). Numerous papers also suggest the inequality-reducing effects of human capital (Abrigo et al 2018;Sehrawat & Singh 2019). Malaysia and China are relevant examples.…”

Section: Discussion: Policy Lessons For Asian Countriesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Structural Transformation, Income Inequality and Government Expenditure: Evidence from International Panel Data

2022

JEM

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In the past few decades, several developing countries have experienced a notable increase in income inequality along the path of economic development. Widening income inequality has been accompanied by growing demand for redistributive policy measures. The purpose of this paper is to examine the government spending and income inequality nexus in the context of structural transformation using an international panel data set covering 51 countries over the period 1990 to 2018 and an analytical framework that draws on Kuznets (1955). The system GMM estimates show that an expansion of government expenditure first generates rising income inequality but falling at the later stage, suggesting an inverted U-shaped relationship. Compared to developed nations, this inequality-reducing effect of government expenditure is more pronounced in developing countries. In addition, the relationship also varies by specific types of government expenditure and sample composition. For instance, inequality-reducing effect of government spending in Asian countries is only limited to health expenditure, indicating that the redistributive impacts of government expenditure may partly depend on the extent to which the primary beneficiaries of such spending are low-income people.

show abstract

“…Ferreira, Firpo & Messina (2022) demonstrate that higher educational attainment renders an increased supply of skilled labour and narrows the labour earnings inequality amongst the working-age population. Abrigo et al (2018) further reiterate that spending on human capital development reduces inequality by improving labour income for low-income earners. Winters and Chiodi (2011) disclose that higher educational attainment allows structural transformation in which workers shift from agricultural to non-agricultural employment, increasing workers' earnings and lowering inequality levels.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 95%

The Resurgence of Income Inequality in Asia-Pacific: The Role of Trade Openness, Educational Attainment and Institutional Quality

2022

JEM

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Within-country inequality is on the rise in many Asian countries despite rapid educational expansion, poverty reduction and export-driven macroeconomic growth. This trend raises questions about the role and effectiveness of governments in redistributing income and wealth. Therefore, our study re-examines the effects of trade openness and educational attainment on income inequality while additionally investigating the role of governance on several dimensions. The study is conducted on nineteen Asian economies for the period 1990-2019. Methodologically, we follow Generalised Methods of Moments using dynamic panel procedures to improve previous efforts to examine the trade-inequality relationship. We hypothesize that good institutions can generate better distributional outcomes in terms of foreign trade and educational attainment. To test this, aggregate measures of institutions on five dimensions of governance -government stability, corruption, law and order, democratic accountability, and bureaucratic quality are incorporated into the empirical model. Our empirical results reveal that controlling for the country's income level, increasing trade openness and overall improvements in institutional quality contribute to reducing income inequality in the Asia-Pacific region. However, educational attainment has an inequalitywidening effect during our period of study. We conclude by discussing other possible explanations for rising inequality in the region, and in that context, the role of public policy in ensuring equitable distributions.

show abstract

Human Capital Spending, Inequality, and Growth in Middle-Income Asia

Cited by 4 publications

References 8 publications

An inquiry into the nexus between energy poverty and income inequality in the light of global evidence

An inquiry into the nexus between energy poverty and income inequality in the light of global evidence

Structural Transformation, Income Inequality and Government Expenditure: Evidence from International Panel Data

The Resurgence of Income Inequality in Asia-Pacific: The Role of Trade Openness, Educational Attainment and Institutional Quality

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About