Table 13. Top Performers in
Reducing Inequality, 2000- 8
(or latest available)
[based on change in Gini index
according to Solt (2009)]
Asia
Thailand - 4.0
Malaysia - 3.0
Philippines - 2.6
Mongolia - 2.0
Eastern Europe and Central Asia
Azerbaijan - 14.7
Moldova - 4.9
Latin America
Brazil - 4.6
Peru - 3.4
Argentina - 3.4
Chile - 3.2
Paraguay - 2.9
El Salvador - 2.4
Bolivia - 2.2
Mexico - 2.2
Panama - 2.1
Nicaragua - 2.0
Venezuela - 2.0
Middle East and North Africa
Egypt - 2.9
Iran - 2.4
Sub-Saharan Africa
Lesotho - 7.9
Malawi - 6.4
Ethiopia - 4.8
Burundi - 4. 6
Mali - 4.6
Sierra Leone - 4.2
Burkina Faso - 4.0
Uganda - 3.5
Nigeria - 3.4
Gabon - 3.2
Swaziland - 2.9
Guinea - 2.6
Cameroon - 2.5
Senegal - 2.5
Niger - 2.3
High-income Countries
Estonia - 4.1
New Zealand - 3.3
South Korea - 2.8
Spain - 2.3
Belgium - 2 .2
Sweden - 2.2
Croatia - 2.1
Further examination reveals diverse
inequality patterns within each of the
regional groupings (see Figures 11-
16). Asia offers an interesting mix
(Figure 11). On the one hand, China
and India—the most populous
countries in the world—stand as
examples of high growth (average
annual GDP per capita growth rates
of 10.1% and 6.3%, respectively,
between 1990 and 2008, based on
World Bank, 2011) and increasing
income inequality (their respective
Gini indices jumped by 12.2 and 3.8
points over the same time period).
While income inequality permeates
most Asian countries, there are
exceptions such as Malaysia and
Thailand, who are visibly reducing
inequality through universal social
policies, including basic education
and health (Jomo and Baudot 2007).As an aggregate, transition
economies of Eastern Europe and
the former Soviet Union, including
the Russian Federation, have
experienced the highest spikes in
income inequality (Figure 12). The
transition from centrally planned to
more liberal regimes appears to have
led to detrimental outcomes in terms
of equity, due to the social impacts
of privatization, changes in
tax/transfer systems, financial and
labour market liberalization, reliance
on commodity exports, and migrant
remittances, among others (Cornia
2010, Simai 2006).