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Reforms, Remoteness and Risk in Africa: Understanding Inequality and Poverty during the 1990s

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  • Luc Christiaensen
  • Lionel Demery
  • Stefano Paternostro

Abstract

This study traces the interactions between economic growth, income inequality and consumption poverty in a sample of African countries during the 1990s. It draws on the much-improved household data sets now available in the region. It finds that experiences have varied: some countries have seen sharp falls in income poverty; others have witnessed marked increases. Economic growth has been 'pro-poor' in that the incomes of poor households have typically grown at similar or faster rates than average income.

Suggested Citation

  • Luc Christiaensen & Lionel Demery & Stefano Paternostro, 2003. "Reforms, Remoteness and Risk in Africa: Understanding Inequality and Poverty during the 1990s," WIDER Working Paper Series DP2003-70, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    • Handle: RePEc:unu:wpaper:dp2003-70
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    Cited by:

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    4. Luc J. Christiaensen & Kalanidhi Subbarao, 2005. "Towards an Understanding of Household Vulnerability in Rural Kenya," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 14(4), pages 520-558, December.
    5. Christiaensen, Luc & Demery, Lionel & Kuhl, Jesper, 2006. "The role of agriculture in poverty reduction an empirical perspective," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4013, The World Bank.
    6. Andries M. Heyns & Robert Banick, 2024. "Optimisation of rural roads planning based on multi-modal travel: a multi-service accessibility study in Nepal’s remote Karnali Province," Transportation, Springer, vol. 51(2), pages 567-613, April.
    7. Pieter Rutsaert & Jordan Chamberlin & Kevin Ong’are Oluoch & Victor Ochieng Kitoto & Jason Donovan, 2021. "The geography of agricultural input markets in rural Tanzania," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 13(6), pages 1379-1391, December.

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