Overcoming Inequality in Latin America: Issues and Challenges for the 21st Century

by Gottschalk; Ricardo

• ISBN13: 9780415362849
• ISBN10: 0415362849
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-12-20
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Latin America is faced with the challenge of achieving the Millennium Developmental Goal to halve poverty in the region by 2015. Historically, this region has experienced persistently high levels of inequality and poverty, and the situation has deteriorated considerably over the past few years. This book analytically examines both the causes and consequences of inequality in Latin America. Overcoming Inequality in Latin Americaadopts a multidimensional approach to understanding the fundamental causes of inequality in the region, focusing on the mechanisms that lead to higher inequality and emphasising the role of macroeconomics, trade rules, capital flows and the political electoral process. This book analyses how inequality has hindered development, how it interacts with a nation's economic, social and political processes, and how inequality constrains the above processes in ways that weakens the prospect of establishing and sustaining a dynamic, wealthy and creative society. Examinining thekey economic policies and reforms which have exacerbated the region's extremely high inequality levels, this book prescribes an alternative range of policy suggestion to help alleviate inequality and provide the foundations for more equitable development. An international team of specialist contributors elucidate these crucial issues and the result is a book which will prove an invaluable resource across a number of fields including development economics and politics.

Table of Contents

List of illustrations	xi
List of contributors	xiii
Preface	xvi
Acknowledgements	xviii
List of abbreviations	xix
1 Introduction	1	(14)
RICARDO GOTTSCHALK AND PATRICIA JUSTINO
2 Inequality in Latin America: dimensions and processes	15	(34)
PATRICIA JUSTINO, JULIE LITCHFIELD AND LAURENCE WHITEHEAD
3 The interactions between inequality and the macroeconomy in Latin America in the post-reform context	49	(28)
RICARDO GOTTSCHALK
4 Inequality in Latin America: what role for the international community?	77	(25)
STEPHANY GRIFFITH-JONES AND JENNY KIMMIS
5 Inequality and trade in Latin America	102	(38)
DAVID EVANS
6 The political economy of inequality: the privatisation of utilities in Latin America	140	(33)
ARNAB ACHARYA, AARON SCHNEIDER AND CECILIA UGAZ
7 Overcoming inequality in Latin America: conclusion and policy recommendations	173	(7)
PATRICIA JUSTINO AND RICARDO GOTTSCHALK
Index	180