Inequality and economic growth in Bangladesh–a diversified evidence on Kuznets pattern `U` hypothesis

Abstract

The study of inequality and economic growth to the developing countries are now a days a comprehensive issue since the growth stimulate the standard of living to the poor people and accordingly reduce income inequality. The improvement of inequality and growth may reduce the social movement to the government and may keep the economic and social integrity amongst the different ethnic groups by efficient resource allocation and income redistribution in Bangladesh. The objective of this research is to assess long term relationship between inequality and growth in Bangladesh with a methodology of Kuznets pattern inverted U hypothesis first introduced by Simon Kuznets since 1955. The popular concept of Kuznets hypothesis suggests that as economic growth occurs, income inequality first increase and then decline after a certain turning point. The study of Kuznets hypothesis is popular to the international economic environment rather than domestic, especially to the developing countries where the per capita GDP is below the level of world average. This study found the evidence that the presumption of Kuznets hypothesis has satisfied in the economy of Bangladesh in national level. In low income countries, structural adjustment is necessary to satisfy the Kuznets hypothesis.

Keywords: Kuznets Hypothesis; Inequality; Growth

DOI: 10.3329/jbau.v7i1.4973

J. Bangladesh Agril. Univ. 7(1): 117-123, 2009