The Fruits of Growth: Economic Reforms and Lower Inequality

By Christine Lagarde

Versions in: عربي (Arabic), 中文 (Chinese), Français (French), 日本語 (Japanese), Português (Portuguese), Русский (Russian), and Español (Spanish)

Growth is essential for improving the lives of people in low-income countries, and it should benefit all parts of society.

Traveling through Africa in the last few days, I have been amazed by the vitality I have witnessed: business startups investing in the future, new infrastructure under construction, and a growing middle class. Many Africans are now making a better living and fewer are suffering from poverty. My current host, Uganda, for example, has more than halved its absolute poverty rate to about 35 percent from close to 90 percent in 1990.

But we have also seen a flip side. Poverty, of course, but inequality as well remain stubbornly high in most developing countries, including in Africa, and too often success is not shared by all. 

Rising Income Polarization in the United States

By Ali Alichi

Version in Español (Spanish)

The latest IMF review of the U.S. economy underscores the country’s resilience in the face of financial market volatility, a strong dollar, and subdued global demand. But the review also cites longer-term challenges to growth, including rising income polarization.

Inequality’s Toll on Growth

by iMFdirect

Inequality is one of the defining issues of our time, so you may want to tune in to this interview with the authors of a new study that shows that  higher inequality leads to lower growth.  You can also read their blog here.

Growth’s Secret Weapon: The Poor and the Middle Class

By Era Dabla-Norris, Kalpana Kochhar, and Evridiki Tsounta

(Versions in  Español, 中文 , 日本語, عربي,and Русский)

The gap between the rich and the poor is at its widest in decades in advanced countries, and inequality is also rising in major emerging markets (Chart 1).  It is becoming increasingly clear that these developments have profound economic implications.

Building on Latin America’s Success

By Christine Lagarde

(Version in Español)

Next week, I will travel to Latin America—my second visit to the region since November 2011. I return with increased optimism, as much of Latin America continues its impressive transformation that started a decade ago.

The region remains resilient to the recent bouts in global volatility, and many countries continue to expand at a healthy pace. An increasing number of people are escaping the perils of poverty to join a growing and increasingly vibrant middle class.