We propose simple graphical methods to identify poverty-reducing marginal reforms of transfer programs. The methods are based on Program Dominance curves that display cumulative program benefits weighted by powers of poverty gaps. These curves can be decomposed simply as sums of targeting...

We propose simple graphical methods to identify poverty-reducing transfer program reforms. The methods are based on Program Dominance curves that display cumulative program benefits weighted by powers of poverty gaps. These curves can be decomposed simply as sums of targeting dominance curves...

In recent years, policymaking in China has put increasing emphasis on stemming the growth in inequality, which had been fairly steep since the 1980s. Policy action has taken the form of regional development measures and of reforms of various aspects of the social safety net broadly defined. The...

The literature on public employment policies such as the job guarantee (JG) and the employer of last resort (ELR) often emphasizes their macroeconomic stabilization effects. But carefully designed and implemented policies like these can also have profound social transformative effects. In...

A class of inequality measures that is a natural companion to the popular Lorenz curve is the class of measures that are linear in incomes. These measures, which include the Gini and S-Gini coefficients, can be interpreted as ethical means of relative deprivation feelings. Their change through...

The analysis of social policy impact over the labour market focuses on assessing the interdependence between the social protection system and the labour market, and performance of the social policies management, determinant factor in order to achieve simultaneous acceleration for social...

This paper aims to investigate income and poverty dynamics in Portugal, with a special focus on chronic poverty. The analysis of income distribution changes in a representative panel of households in Portugal allow us to understand prevailing income mobility patterns as well as quantify and...

This paper aims to assess the extent to which social policies address chronic poverty in south European Union countries and particularly in Portugal. The Southern European welfare regime (Leibfried, 1993; Ferrera, 1996; Bonoli, 1997; Matsaganis et al, 2003), which includes Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain,...

Fiscal policy can change poverty and inequality substantially or slightly depending on the government’s redistributive effort. We develop a diagnostic framework to assess how aligned fiscal policies are with supporting a minimum living standard and human capital accumulation, as well as with...

Inequality and poverty fell sharply in many Latin American countries during a decade in which voters in ten countries chose left-leaning leaders. Are these developments related? Using data for 18 Latin American countries, this paper presents econometric evidence that social democratic regimes in...