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Changing income inequality and structural transformation: The case of Botswana 1921-2010

Hillbom, Ellen LU orcid and Bolt, Jutta (2015) In WIDER Working Paper 2015/028.
Abstract
In Sub-Saharan Africa we find some of the highest levels of income inequality in the world. Nevertheless, we generally know very little about the historical development of inequality. In this paper we look at how inequality developed in colonial and post-colonial Botswana. We show that income inequality started rising in the 1940s and peaked in the mid-1970s about the time that the economy switched from cattle to diamonds. Since the 1990s, it has then declined somewhat. Following the tradition of Kuznets we discuss how this rise and decline could be related to a potential structural transformation of the economy.
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Working paper/Preprint
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Botswana, Africa, inequality, structural transformation
in
WIDER Working Paper
volume
2015/028
publisher
UNU-WIDER
ISBN
978-92-9230-913-8
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
50d6a24a-0626-44b6-9fc9-cbeabe5bde58 (old id 5268064)
alternative location
http://www.wider.unu.edu/publications/working-papers/2015/en_GB/wp2015-028/
date added to LUP
2016-04-04 09:54:18
date last changed
2018-11-21 20:55:36
@misc{50d6a24a-0626-44b6-9fc9-cbeabe5bde58,
  abstract     = {{In Sub-Saharan Africa we find some of the highest levels of income inequality in the world. Nevertheless, we generally know very little about the historical development of inequality. In this paper we look at how inequality developed in colonial and post-colonial Botswana. We show that income inequality started rising in the 1940s and peaked in the mid-1970s about the time that the economy switched from cattle to diamonds. Since the 1990s, it has then declined somewhat. Following the tradition of Kuznets we discuss how this rise and decline could be related to a potential structural transformation of the economy.}},
  author       = {{Hillbom, Ellen and Bolt, Jutta}},
  isbn         = {{978-92-9230-913-8}},
  keywords     = {{Botswana; Africa; inequality; structural transformation}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Working Paper}},
  publisher    = {{UNU-WIDER}},
  series       = {{WIDER Working Paper}},
  title        = {{Changing income inequality and structural transformation: The case of Botswana 1921-2010}},
  url          = {{http://www.wider.unu.edu/publications/working-papers/2015/en_GB/wp2015-028/}},
  volume       = {{2015/028}},
  year         = {{2015}},
}