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Are We Really Painting the Devil on the Walls? Polarization and its Drivers in Sub-Saharan Africa in the Past Two Decades

Author

Listed:
  • Fabio Clementi
  • Michele Fabiani
  • Vasco Molini
  • Rocco Zizzamia

Abstract

The development path of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) over the past two decades has been characterized by sluggish poverty reduction occurring alongside robust economic growth. Applying polarization measures to comparable survey data from 24 SSA countries, we find that there has been a generalizable increase in polarization over the past two decades—and in particular, an increased concentration of households in the lower tail of the welfare distribution of SSA countries. The polarization process is further analyzed by identifying the main drivers and singling out the effect of different covariates at different points in the consumption distribution. This investigation reveals that the drivers of polarization are relatively similar across SSA: demographic, urban/rural, regional variables and access to basic infrastructure are found to be the most important drivers of polarization in many countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Fabio Clementi & Michele Fabiani & Vasco Molini & Rocco Zizzamia, 2022. "Are We Really Painting the Devil on the Walls? Polarization and its Drivers in Sub-Saharan Africa in the Past Two Decades," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 31(2), pages 124-146.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:jafrec:v:31:y:2022:i:2:p:124-146.
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1093/jae/ejab006
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    Cited by:

    1. Fabio Clementi & Vasco Molini & Francesco Schettino & Haider A. Khan & Michele Fabiani, 2023. "Polarization and its discontents: Morocco before and after the Arab Spring," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 21(1), pages 105-129, March.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Sub-Saharan Africa; consumption distribution; polarization; relative distribution; decomposition analysis; JEL classification: C14; D31; D63;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C14 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods and Methodology: General - - - Semiparametric and Nonparametric Methods: General
    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement

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