Publish : 19 Jan 2022, 11:20 PMUpdate : 19 Jan 2022, 11:22 PM
The term “development” is being discussed everywhere, wherever you go. But what does it mean? It means growth, progress, or expansion. Development has various dimensions, and according to those dimensions, its definition changes. Thus, it's certainly stiff to find a single definition.
In the simplest of terms, we, the mass people, understand development as economic development. It refers to improved quality of life, well-being of a nation, and increased per capita income, GDP etc. But most of the time we ignore other dimensions.
We judge a country's development through their economic dimension only, but it's disheartening that "inequality and disparity" within the society is always ignored by us. Economists and policy makers often talk about poverty. However, inequality has been rising all over the world.
The poor are becoming poorer in the modern capitalist society. Bangladesh has achieved considerably in terms of economic development; however, augmenting income disparity remains a matter of concern. While the country became one of the fastest growing economies in its 50 years of independence, in the meantime income inequality has also been rising.
The gap between the rich and poor can be described through income inequality. Excessive concentration of wealth/income in the hands of a small proportion of people is known as income inequality. It goes without saying that inequality outshines the economic growth of a country. In Bangladesh, a small section of society has been enjoying most of the wealth by depriving the larger volume of poor or middle-class people.
In 2021, 18.7% of the total national income of Bangladesh is in the hands of only 1% of the people. In contrast, 50% of the lower-class people have 16.1% of the total income, followed by the report of “World Inequality Report 2022.”
Furthermore, 40% of the total national income is in the hands of 10% people. Reportedly, 11.8% wealth belonged to 1% of the people in 1971. In recent years, although the situation has been stable, the number of poor people is on the rise, whilst the number of rich people is also increasing.
The latest Household Income and Expenditure Survey published in 2016 highlights a worrying progress. According to the survey, not much employment has been created in the country.
According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics’ (BBS) latest Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES), the country's Gini coefficient -- which is an economic indicator of equality -- rose to 0.482 in 2016, up from 0.458 in 2010, indicating a concerning trend. Gini stood at 33.12 in 2010, down from 33.22 in 2005. In 1984, the Gini coefficient was 25.88, and by 1996, it had risen to 33.46.
In 1971, nearly 90% of Bangladeshis lived in villages; but nowadays, only about 70% do. The population of the capital city has increased from 2% in 1980 to 10% today. The number of urban people has been escalating swiftly.
The growing spatial inequality in income earnings is due to a lack of decentralization. Dhaka and Chittagong residents earn more than those who live elsewhere. What about the other regions’ populations? The regional perspective of income inequality in Bangladesh indicates that the monthly household income of the Rangpur division is less than the 60% income of households in the Chittagong division. The incidence of poverty in the Rangpur and Rajshahi divisions is four times more than that of the Dhaka and Chittagong divisions.
The spirit of the liberation war of Bangladesh was a struggle for emancipation of all kinds of discrimination from the society. But we are observing a different picture. Despite the rising GDP, all people are not getting wealth properly. The reason behind this disparity is the sluggish growth of job opportunities and the low wages.
Moreover, poverty reduction strategies are not working to some extent, and the pandemic has pushed 32.4 million people into poverty. Embezzlement of foreign funds and rampant corruption are also responsible for growing disparity.
Robust inclusive development and growth policy is needed to lessen inequality in society. In addition to social safety net programs, zakat providing and income generation activities with proper monitoring must be ensured from urban to grassroot level. Needless to say, the government cannot do that alone; there is a need for strong GO-NGO collaboration.
Md Obaidullah is working as a Research Assistant at Centre for Advanced Social Research, Dhaka. He can be contacted at: [email protected]
Too much of not enough
Dissecting the predominant causes of income disparity
The term “development” is being discussed everywhere, wherever you go. But what does it mean? It means growth, progress, or expansion. Development has various dimensions, and according to those dimensions, its definition changes. Thus, it's certainly stiff to find a single definition.
In the simplest of terms, we, the mass people, understand development as economic development. It refers to improved quality of life, well-being of a nation, and increased per capita income, GDP etc. But most of the time we ignore other dimensions.
We judge a country's development through their economic dimension only, but it's disheartening that "inequality and disparity" within the society is always ignored by us. Economists and policy makers often talk about poverty. However, inequality has been rising all over the world.
The poor are becoming poorer in the modern capitalist society. Bangladesh has achieved considerably in terms of economic development; however, augmenting income disparity remains a matter of concern. While the country became one of the fastest growing economies in its 50 years of independence, in the meantime income inequality has also been rising.
The gap between the rich and poor can be described through income inequality. Excessive concentration of wealth/income in the hands of a small proportion of people is known as income inequality. It goes without saying that inequality outshines the economic growth of a country. In Bangladesh, a small section of society has been enjoying most of the wealth by depriving the larger volume of poor or middle-class people.
In 2021, 18.7% of the total national income of Bangladesh is in the hands of only 1% of the people. In contrast, 50% of the lower-class people have 16.1% of the total income, followed by the report of “World Inequality Report 2022.”
Furthermore, 40% of the total national income is in the hands of 10% people. Reportedly, 11.8% wealth belonged to 1% of the people in 1971. In recent years, although the situation has been stable, the number of poor people is on the rise, whilst the number of rich people is also increasing.
The latest Household Income and Expenditure Survey published in 2016 highlights a worrying progress. According to the survey, not much employment has been created in the country.
According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics’ (BBS) latest Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES), the country's Gini coefficient -- which is an economic indicator of equality -- rose to 0.482 in 2016, up from 0.458 in 2010, indicating a concerning trend. Gini stood at 33.12 in 2010, down from 33.22 in 2005. In 1984, the Gini coefficient was 25.88, and by 1996, it had risen to 33.46.
In 1971, nearly 90% of Bangladeshis lived in villages; but nowadays, only about 70% do. The population of the capital city has increased from 2% in 1980 to 10% today. The number of urban people has been escalating swiftly.
The growing spatial inequality in income earnings is due to a lack of decentralization. Dhaka and Chittagong residents earn more than those who live elsewhere. What about the other regions’ populations? The regional perspective of income inequality in Bangladesh indicates that the monthly household income of the Rangpur division is less than the 60% income of households in the Chittagong division. The incidence of poverty in the Rangpur and Rajshahi divisions is four times more than that of the Dhaka and Chittagong divisions.
The spirit of the liberation war of Bangladesh was a struggle for emancipation of all kinds of discrimination from the society. But we are observing a different picture. Despite the rising GDP, all people are not getting wealth properly. The reason behind this disparity is the sluggish growth of job opportunities and the low wages.
Moreover, poverty reduction strategies are not working to some extent, and the pandemic has pushed 32.4 million people into poverty. Embezzlement of foreign funds and rampant corruption are also responsible for growing disparity.
Robust inclusive development and growth policy is needed to lessen inequality in society. In addition to social safety net programs, zakat providing and income generation activities with proper monitoring must be ensured from urban to grassroot level. Needless to say, the government cannot do that alone; there is a need for strong GO-NGO collaboration.
Md Obaidullah is working as a Research Assistant at Centre for Advanced Social Research, Dhaka. He can be contacted at: [email protected]
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