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Yusi Ouyang on Fighting poverty to promote growth
Yusi Ouyang presents at the WIDER Seminar Series on 8 June 2023.
Fighting poverty to promote growth
Abstract
This study explores the link from poverty reduction to economic growth through (1) building an analytical model; (2) performing simple regression analysis; and (3) attempting a dynamic Difference-in-Differences analysis. The analytical model assumes a Solow economy with two equilibria (poor and non-poor), and shows that faster poverty reduction will raise the level of per capita output in the poor sector and foster inclusive growth for the whole economy. The simple regression analysis using data from some 110 developing countries during 1992-2018 supports the analytical prediction and further suggests a link from faster poverty reduction to faster growth for both sectors (proxied by the agriculture and industry sector, respectively) and the economy as a whole. Finally, the dynamic Difference-in-Differences analysis attempt suggests that a cross-country identification of the impact of anti-poverty reduction programs on economic growth is likely to be fruitless, not just because countries are systematically different before intervention, but also because one cannot accurately identify times countries enter intervention --- which means Difference-in-Differences approach is not suitable, and neither are approaches that allows unparallel pre-trends such as the Synthetic Control Method and the Difference-in-Difference-in-Differences approach.
About the presenter
Yusi Ouyang is a development economist working on growth, poverty, inequality, and their interrelationships using both macroeconomic and applied microeconomic approaches. In terms of genographic focus, she works on Sub-Saharan Africa and China. She currently is an associate professor at the University of Tulsa in Oklahoma, the United States.
WIDER Seminar Series
The WIDER Seminar Series showcases the latest research on key topics in development economics. It provides a forum for senior and early-career researchers, both in-house and external, to present recent and ongoing work related to UNU-WIDER’s current work programme.
In addition to providing a forum for both academic debate and training, the series presents an opportunity for policy makers and others interested in development to learn about the latest research methods and findings.
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