Book
Spatial Inequality and Development

What exactly is spatial inequality? Why does it matter? And what should be the policy response to it? These questions have become important in recent years as the spatial dimensions of inequality have begun to attract considerable policy interest. In China, Russia, India, Mexico, and South Africa, as well as most other developing and transition economies, spatial and regional inequality - of economic activity, incomes, and social indicators - is on the increase. Spatial inequality is a dimension of overall inequality, but it has added significance when spatial and regional divisions align with political and ethnic tensions to undermine social and political stability. Also important in the policy debate is a perceived sense that increasing internal spatial inequality is related to greater openness of economies, and to globalization in general. Despite these important concerns, there is remarkably little systematic documentation of what has happened to spatial and regional inequality over the last twenty years. Correspondingly, there is insufficient understanding of the determinants of internal spatial inequality. This volume attempts to answer the questions posed above, drawing on data from twenty-five countries from all regions of the world. They bring together perspectives and expertise in development economics and in economic geography and form a well-researched introduction to an area of growing analytical and policy importance.

Table of contents
  1. Part I: Introduction
    1. Spatial Inequality and Development
    Ravi Kanbur, Anthony J. Venables
  2. Part II: Measurement of Spatial Inequality
    2. Regional Output Differences in International Perspective
    Bettina Aten, Alan W. Heston
  3. Part II: Measurement of Spatial Inequality
    3. Are Neighbors Equal?: Estimating Local Inequality in Three Developing Countries
    Chris Elbers, Peter Lanjouw, Johan A. Mistiaen, Berk Özler, Kenneth Simler
  4. Part II: Measurement of Spatial Inequality
    4. Opening the Convergence Black Box: Measurement Problems and Demographic Aspects
    Carlos R. Azzoni, Naércio A. Menezes-Filho, Tatiane Menezes
  5. Part III: Location, Externalities, and Unequal Development
    5. Adverse Geography and Differences in Welfare in Peru
    Javier Escobal, David E. Weinstein
  6. Part III: Location, Externalities, and Unequal Development
    6. Market Size, Linkages, and Productivity: A Study of Japanese Regions
    Donald Davis, David E. Weinstein
  7. Part III: Location, Externalities, and Unequal Development
    7. Externalities in Rural Development: Evidence from China
    Martin Ravallion
  8. Part IV: Growth and Poverty Reduction―The Regional Linkage
    8. How Responsive is Poverty to Growth?: A Regional Analysis of Poverty, Inequality, and Growth in Indonesia, 1984-99
    Jed Friedman
    More Working Paper | How Responsive is Poverty to Growth? A Regional Analysis of Poverty, Inequality, and Growth in Indonesia, 1984-99
  9. Part IV: Growth and Poverty Reduction―The Regional Linkage
    9. Reforms, Remoteness, and Risk in Africa: Understanding Inequality and Poverty during the 1990s
    Luc Christiaensen, Lionel Demery, Stefano Paternostro
  10. Part V: Trade, Wages, and Regional Inequality
    10. Economic Polarization Through Trade: Trade Liberalization and Regional Growth in Mexico
    Andres Rodriguez-Pose, Javier Sánchez-Reaza
  11. Part V: Trade, Wages, and Regional Inequality
    11. International Trade, Location, and Wage Inequality in China
    Songhua Lin
  12. Part V: Trade, Wages, and Regional Inequality
    12. Spatial Inequality for Manufacturing Wages in Five African Countries
    Dirk Willem te Velde, Oliver Morrissey
  13. Part VI: Spatial Inequality During Transition
    13. Regional Poverty and Income Inequality in Central and Eastern Europe: Evidence from the Luxembourg Income Study
    Michael F. Förster, David Jesuit, Timothy M. Smeeding
  14. Part VI: Spatial Inequality During Transition
    14. Quo Vadis? Inequality and Poverty Dynamics Across Russian Regions
    Ruslan Yemtsov
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Endorsements

'This book, edited by two internationally recognized leaders in development economics and economic geography ... is highly recommended to scholars within peace research - especially those working on distributional issues and violent conflict.' - Journal of Peace Research

'This volume will be useful to the scholarly community.' - Journal of Peace Research May 2006