Business Regulations and Poverty

Abstract

Using panel data for 189 economies from 2005 to 2013, this paper shows that business-friendly regulations are correlated with the poverty headcount at the country level. This association is significant using the World Bank's Doing Business indicators on getting credit and contract enforcement. The findings suggest that the conduit for poverty reduction is business creation, as a source of new jobs and a manifestation of thriving entrepreneurship.

Keywords: Inequality, Legislation, Judicial System Reform, Legal Products, Regulatory Regimes, Social Policy, Legal Reform, Public Finance Decentralization and Poverty Reduction, Macro-Fiscal Policy, Economic Adjustment and Lending, Public Sector Economics, Health Care Services Industry, Law and Justice Institutions