Inequality in Belarus from 1995 to 2005

CERGE-EI Working Paper Series No. 356

55 Pages Posted: 16 Oct 2009

See all articles by Maksim Yemelyanau

Maksim Yemelyanau

Charles University in Prague - CERGE-EI, a joint workplace of Charles University and the Economics Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences

Date Written: June 1, 2008

Abstract

Income and consumption inequality increased in all transition economies, albeit to very different levels. Existing findings suggest that countries that were slow to undertake premarket reforms experienced the largest increase in inequality, with the notable exception of Belarus, one of the least reformed ex-Soviet republics, that nevertheless has inequality comparable to the most advanced and least unequal transition countries of Central Europe. This article studies the evolution of inequality in Belarus in 1995-2005, decomposes inequality by region and source of income, and provides cross-country comparisons. Specifically, a comparison of Belarus and Ukraine, based on DiNardo-Fortin-Lemieux Counterfactual Kernel Densities, suggests that the large difference in inequality levels is due to different income policies of the two countries: Belarus is unusual not only in its lack of privatization, but also in that it kept many of the old-style Soviet social security features.

Keywords: Belarus, Ukraine, transition, income inequality, expenditure inequality, social security

JEL Classification: D31, D63, H55, O15

Suggested Citation

Yemelyanau, Maksim, Inequality in Belarus from 1995 to 2005 (June 1, 2008). CERGE-EI Working Paper Series No. 356, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1488826 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1488826

Maksim Yemelyanau (Contact Author)

Charles University in Prague - CERGE-EI, a joint workplace of Charles University and the Economics Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences ( email )

Politickych veznu 7
Prague, 111 21
Czech Republic

HOME PAGE: http://www.cerge-ei.cz

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