In Colombia, and in other countries, the objective of the Extension of the EU-AFD Research Facility on Inequalities is to provide analysis, methodologies, and statistics that allow understanding the state of inequalities in the country, the dynamics and interrelationships with the different areas, sectors, and regions of the economy. The objective is to provide robust and updated data, to provide evidence for the construction of public policies, but also to identify areas where data collection can be improved, and those where research can be deepened to better understand the context and support the construction of public policies aimed at reducing inequalities...

In Colombia, DANE has made great progress in recent years in the collection and availability of data in order to analyze and better understand the reality of the country. Several studies have been carried out with some of these data, but, for several years, there has been no comprehensive analysis of inequalities at the national level using several databases to get a complete picture of the country's situation. Since mid-2021, AFD has been working hand-in-hand with DANE and Fedesarrollo to carry out a multidimensional diagnostic on inequalities, based on an innovative reference methodology created by AFD. It provides a comprehensive view of the country's situation as it covers a wide range of aspects (health, education, incomes, etc.) all under the prism of inequalities and using different indicators and databases.

This project is framed in a context in which inequalities acquire crucial relevance in the public policy of the current government and in the agreements adopted by it within the framework of the 2030 agenda, as well as in its entry into the OECD.

The project aimed to support and strengthen the production of national statistics on inequalities, promoting exchanges and interoperability between DANE and other national and international institutions. More specifically, the main objectives were:

1. To implement the methodology of the multidimensional diagnostic on inequalities, and therefore create the first national diagnostic on inequalities in Colombia. For this, AFD worked hand in hand with Fedesarrollo and in close collaboration with DANE.
2. To accompany DANE's technical teams in the production, updating and improvement of statistics on inequalities based on the inequality diagnostic methodology. These data will be used to monitor over time the evolution of the indicators considered relevant, and, depending on the outcome of the data collected, to advance in analyses that integrate elements related to climate change and the environment.
3. To support DANE’s technical teams in implementing new methodologies and initiatives to obtain statistics that allow a better understanding of the distribution of income of individuals and households in the country. Workshops and seminars served to share experiences and establish practices that allow high-quality data for decision-making.

The research project led to the publication of the multidimensional diagnostic on inequalities in Colombia. It takes into account multiple dimensions of inequality: income distribution, consumption, labour income, household assets and services, level of wealth in land and financial assets, access to and quality of education and health, access to basic services... This document is key to understanding the gaps that exist in Colombia, and allows for evidence-based decision-making and progress towards reducing inequalities.
 

Download the full report

In Mexico, more than 40 percent of the population is under the official poverty line. At the same time, Mexico is characterized by a society in which the socioeconomic origin condition is highly related to life achievement, especially on the extremes of the socioeconomic distribution (Vélez-Grajales et al, 2014). On this matter, empirical evidence shows that once the population is divided by quintiles, 48 out of 100 that were born in the lowest quintile stay there for the rest of their lives. Above the rest of them, i.e. those who are able to move to another quintile, 22 reach the second quintile. In summary, previous result leaves in poverty 70 percent of those with origin in the first quintile. It has to be noted that only 4 out of 100 that were born in the lowest quintile will move up to the top quintile.

On the other hand, above those that were born in the top quintile, 52 out of each 100 stay there for the rest of their lives. Moreover, above those that experience downward mobility, 28 out of each 100 move to the fourth quintile, i.e., 80 out of each 100 that were born in the top quintile will stay at least in the fourth quintile. Finally, it has to be noted that only 2 out of 100 that were born in the top quintile will move down to the lowest quintile. This means social mobility is very low.

This project is part of the first phase of the Research Facility on Inequalities, coordinated by AFD and funded by the European Commission's Directorate-General for International Partnerships over the 2017-2020 period. The first phase of the Facility has led to the conduct of 22 research projects and the publication of around 100 research papers and policy briefs.

How are economic inequality and social mobility related? Is it possible that the highest levels of socioeconomic persistence (lower social mobility) in terms of origin determined, in part, both perception and tolerance against economic inequality? The Mexican case, which is one where socioeconomic regional disparities are significant, represents a good option to analyze if such relationship holds. Moreover, there is still a gap in the literature for explaining the mechanisms behind the observed negative relationship.

Additionally, an important and relevant unanswered question for the Mexican case is the perception of Mexicans about inequality and social mobility levels. What if Mexicans think that the country is one of equal opportunities and results for all? Policy implications should be different among different perception scenarios. In any case, it is necessary to get information in order to understand the mechanisms at household and local level that explain the potential distance between perception and reality.

First, using a multivariate analysis method, relative intergenerational mobility can be estimated for each macro-region of the country. Several inequality measures will be estimated, but for several points in time. The researchers have chosen to do so because it is possible that not current but origin economic inequality is the relevant one for intergenerational social mobility. Once the relationship is estimated, a discussion on the mechanisms behind it should be developed. The empirical analysis will be mainly based on the “Encuesta ESRU de Movilidad Social en México 2017”.

Additionally, work with groups in 4 different cities with different levels of socioeconomic performance will be held. The researchers expect to do fieldwork in at least two different spots within each city: one for a group of medium-high socioeconomic level and one of medium-low socioeconomic level. The interview will include a measure for both inequality and social mobility. In such a way, the researchers will be able to understand in a better way the relationship between perceptions and objective measures on the variables of research interest.

See this project's 2 minutes pitch from Alice Krozer, researcher at Colegio de México:

You may find the research papers and the policy briefs linked to this project here :

Research papers:

- Social mobility in Mexico. What can we learn from its regional variation?

- Perceptions of inequality and social mobility in Mexico

Policy briefs:

- Wide regional differences in social mobility across Mexico

- Inaccurate public perceptions of inequality and social mobility in Mexico

Find the presentation of the research paper "Perceptions of inequality and social mobility in Mexico" by Aurora Ramirez Alvarez (Colegio de Mexico) during the first webinar of the Research Facility on Inequalities: 

Contact:

• Anda David, Research Officer, AFD. 

Contacto: 



Anda David, coordinadora de investigación, AFD.