When does self-employment equalise income? Evidence from developing countries

Purpose - A lack of sufficient gainful employment opportunities in developing countries means that those at the bottom of the income ladder resort to self-employment for survival. While self-employment equalises inequality by providing earning opportunities to such individuals due to the ease of entry, it also creates a competitive environment among the self-employed, consequently widening inequality. In light of this, the study aims to determine the optimal level at which self-employment narrows inequality. Design/methodology/approach - Five-yearly average data from 72 developing countries covering 2000–2019 is used. Inequality measures include Gini, and self-employment includes total, male and female participation levels. The empirical analysis is based on the dynamic two-step system Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) estimation approach, two-stage instrumental variables (2 SLS IV) approach and Sasabuchi (1980) and Lind and Mehlum (2010) test. Several robustness checks are used to validate the findings. Findings - Prima facie, the study's findings suggest that self-employment equalises inequality in developing countries. The income-equalising effect can be seen, however, when the total, male and female self-employment levels are below the optimal of 54.22% of total employment, 52.50% of male employment and 54.19% of female employment, respectively. Inequality widens when self-employment exceeds these optimal levels. Further, the income-narrowing effect of self-employment is larger than its income-widening effect. When self-employment is below its optimal level, it reduces inequality 80 times more effectively than when it widens above the optimal levels. The corresponding figures for male and female self-employment are 90 and 52, respectively. Second, the income-equalising effects of self-employment are gender-specific. Practical implications - Developing countries striving to achieve SDG 10 should limit self-employment to the above-mentioned levels. To this end, an inclusive approach to reducing inequality requires these countries to use selective and targeted policy interventions to create gainful employment opportunities for those above the identified optimal levels and eventually assist them in utilising these opportunities. Originality/value - To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to determine the optimal levels at which self-employment equalises income in developing countries. As such, it makes novel contributions to both labour and development economics.