IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i11p6411-d568963.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Investment Portfolio, Democratic Accountability, Poverty and Income Inequality Nexus in Pakistan: A Way to Social Sustainability

Author

Listed:
  • Muhammad Shahid Hassan

    (Department of Economics, University of Management and Technology Pakistan, Punjab 54770, Pakistan)

  • Haider Mahmood

    (Department of Finance, College of Business Administration, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Alkharj 11942, Saudi Arabia)

  • Muhammad Ibrahim Saeed

    (Department of Economics, University of Management and Technology Pakistan, Punjab 54770, Pakistan)

  • Tarek Tawfik Yousef Alkhateeb

    (Department of Agricultural Economics, Kafrelsheikh University, Kafrelsheikh 33511, Egypt)

  • Noman Arshed

    (Department of Economics, University of Management and Technology Pakistan, Punjab 54770, Pakistan)

  • Doaa H. I. Mahmoud

    (Faculty of Agriculture, Alexandria University, Alexandria 21545, Egypt)

Abstract

Institutions help to streamline the economic activity-related procedures, where government intervention might be involved. Institutions also play a significant role in social sustainability. The findings using the Autoregressive Distributed Lag approach to cointegration for the period from 1984–2019 reveal that investment portfolio and democratic accountability reduce poverty in Pakistan both in the long and short run. Moreover, democratic accountability helps to reduce income inequality, but the investment portfolio’s role is not significant. The literacy rate helps to reduce income inequality, and inflation increases poverty and income inequality. The remittances increase income inequality, and urbanization increases poverty. To eradicate poverty and income inequality, the governments should be accountable for their actions to the general public while they remain in power. If they do not deliver as per their manifestoes, they will not be reelected in the next election. Moreover, there is a dire need to redefine the role of an investment portfolio to reduce the risk of investment. So, investments would increase economic activities and could reduce poverty and income inequality. This study contributes to the literature by inquiring about the role of the investment portfolio and democratic accountability in social sustainability by reducing poverty and income inequality. This study only considers Pakistan’s economy due to limitations of poverty data availability in other countries. The scope could further be broadened by accessing data for a wider Asia region to test the role of the investment portfolio and democratic accountability to reduce poverty and income inequality.

Suggested Citation

  • Muhammad Shahid Hassan & Haider Mahmood & Muhammad Ibrahim Saeed & Tarek Tawfik Yousef Alkhateeb & Noman Arshed & Doaa H. I. Mahmoud, 2021. "Investment Portfolio, Democratic Accountability, Poverty and Income Inequality Nexus in Pakistan: A Way to Social Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-16, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:11:p:6411-:d:568963
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/11/6411/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/11/6411/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Muhammad Shahbaz & Nanthakumar Loganathan & Aviral Tiwari & Reza Sherafatian-Jahromi, 2015. "Financial Development and Income Inequality: Is There Any Financial Kuznets Curve in Iran?," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 124(2), pages 357-382, November.
    2. Alberto Alesina & Dani Rodrik, 1994. "Distributive Politics and Economic Growth," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 109(2), pages 465-490.
    3. Thang Cong Nguyen & Tan Ngoc Vu & Duc Hong Vo & Dao Thi-Thieu Ha, 2019. "Financial Development and Income Inequality in Emerging Markets: A New Approach," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-14, November.
    4. M. Hashem Pesaran & Yongcheol Shin & Richard J. Smith, 2001. "Bounds testing approaches to the analysis of level relationships," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 16(3), pages 289-326.
    5. Yee Ngoo & Nai Tey & Eu Tan, 2015. "Determinants of Life Satisfaction in Asia," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 124(1), pages 141-156, October.
    6. Rashid Amjad, 2012. "Stagflation, the Labor Market Impact, and the Poverty Puzzle in Pakistan: A Preliminary Analysis," Lahore Journal of Economics, Department of Economics, The Lahore School of Economics, vol. 17(Special E), pages 51-71, September.
    7. Muhammad Shahid Hassan & Samra Bukhari & Noman Arshed, 2020. "Competitiveness, governance and globalization: What matters for poverty alleviation?," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 22(4), pages 3491-3518, April.
    8. Jonas Voßemer & Michael Gebel & Kadri Täht & Marge Unt & Björn Högberg & Mattias Strandh, 2018. "The Effects of Unemployment and Insecure Jobs on Well-Being and Health: The Moderating Role of Labor Market Policies," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 138(3), pages 1229-1257, August.
    9. Jorge Garza-Rodriguez, 2019. "Tourism and Poverty Reduction in Mexico: An ARDL Cointegration Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-10, February.
    10. Noman Arshed & Awais Anwar & Muhammad Shahid Hassan & Samra Bukhari, 2019. "Education stock and its implication for income inequality: The case of Asian economies," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 23(2), pages 1050-1066, May.
    11. Simplice A. Asongu & Oasis Kodila-Tedika, 2018. "Institutions and Poverty: A Critical Comment Based on Evolving Currents and Debates," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 139(1), pages 99-117, August.
    12. Kashif MUNIR & Maryam SULTAN, 2017. "Macroeconomic determinants of income inequality in India and Pakistan," Theoretical and Applied Economics, Asociatia Generala a Economistilor din Romania - AGER, vol. 0(4(613), W), pages 109-120, Winter.
    13. Chee-Hong Law & Siew-Voon Soon, 2020. "The impact of inflation on income inequality: the role of institutional quality," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(21), pages 1735-1738, December.
    14. Chiung-Ju Huang & Yuan-Hong Ho, 2018. "The Impact of Governance on Income Inequality in Ten Asian Countries," Journal of Reviews on Global Economics, Lifescience Global, vol. 7, pages 217-224.
    15. Mehmet Akif Destek & Avik Sinha & Samuel Asumadu Sarkodie, 2020. "The relationship between financial development and income inequality in Turkey," Journal of Economic Structures, Springer;Pan-Pacific Association of Input-Output Studies (PAPAIOS), vol. 9(1), pages 1-14, December.
    16. Saqlain Latif Satti & Muhammad Shahid Hassan & Fozia Hayat & Sudharshan Reddy Paramati, 2016. "Economic Growth and Inflow of Remittances: Do They Combat Poverty in an Emerging Economy?," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 127(3), pages 1119-1134, July.
    17. Haroon Jamal, 2006. "Does Inequality Matter for Poverty Reduction? Evidence from Pakistan’s Poverty Trends," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 45(3), pages 439-459.
    18. Aloui, Zouhaier, 2019. "The impact of governance on poverty reduction : Are there regional differences in Sub-saharan Africa ?," MPRA Paper 94716, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Rukhsana Kalim & Muhammad Shahid Hassan, 2014. "Public Defense Spending and Poverty in Pakistan," Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics, IEF, vol. 211(4), pages 93-115, December.
    20. Hwan-Joo Seo & HanSung Kim & Young Soo Lee, 2020. "The Dynamic Relationship between Inequality and Sustainable Economic Growth," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(14), pages 1-16, July.
    21. Serena Ng & Pierre Perron, 2001. "LAG Length Selection and the Construction of Unit Root Tests with Good Size and Power," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 69(6), pages 1519-1554, November.
    22. Muhammad Shahbaz & Faridul Islam, 2011. "Financial Development And Income Inequality In Pakistan: An Application Of Ardl Approach," Journal of Economic Development, Chung-Ang Unviersity, Department of Economics, vol. 36(1), pages 35-58, March.
    23. Marinko Škare & Saša Stjepanovic, 2014. "Income Distribution Determinants and Inequality – International Comparison," The AMFITEATRU ECONOMIC journal, Academy of Economic Studies - Bucharest, Romania, vol. 16(37), pages 980-980, August.
    24. Aadil Ahmad Ganaie & Sajad ahmad Bhat & Bandi Kamaiah, 2018. "Macro-determinants of Income Inequality: An Empirical Analysis in case of India," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 38(1), pages 309-325.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Chen, Shengming & Hassan, Muhammad Shahid & Latif, Ayesha & Rafay, Abdul & Mahmood, Haider & Xu, Xiaowei, 2023. "Investigating resource curse/blessing hypothesis: An empirical insights from Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Portugal economies," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    2. Yu-Ke, Chen & Hassan, Muhammad Shahid & Kalim, Rukhsana & Mahmood, Haider & Arshed, Noman & Salman, Muhammad, 2022. "Testing asymmetric influence of clean and unclean energy for targeting environmental quality in environmentally poor economies," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 197(C), pages 765-775.
    3. Gao, Jinchao & Hassan, Muhammad Shahid & Kalim, Rukhsana & Sharif, Arshian & Alkhateeb, Tarek Tawfik Yousef & Mahmood, Haider, 2023. "The role of clean and unclean energy resources in inspecting N-shaped impact of industrial production on environmental quality: A case of high polluting economies," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    4. Umut Uzar, 2023. "Income Inequality, Institutions, and Freedom of the Press: Potential Mechanisms and Evidence," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-23, August.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Murat Cetin & Harun Demir & Selin Saygin, 2021. "Financial Development, Technological Innovation and Income Inequality: Time Series Evidence from Turkey," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 156(1), pages 47-69, July.
    2. Boukraine, Wissem, 2020. "The finance-inequality nexus in the BRICS countries: evidence from an ARDL bound testing approach," MPRA Paper 101976, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Saqlain Latif Satti & Muhammad Shahid Hassan & Fozia Hayat & Sudharshan Reddy Paramati, 2016. "Economic Growth and Inflow of Remittances: Do They Combat Poverty in an Emerging Economy?," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 127(3), pages 1119-1134, July.
    4. Yu-Ke, Chen & Hassan, Muhammad Shahid & Kalim, Rukhsana & Mahmood, Haider & Arshed, Noman & Salman, Muhammad, 2022. "Testing asymmetric influence of clean and unclean energy for targeting environmental quality in environmentally poor economies," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 197(C), pages 765-775.
    5. Muhammad Shahbaz & Naveed Aamir, 2007. "Rural-Urban Income Inequality under Financial Development and Trade Openness in Pakistan: The Econometric Evidence," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 46(4), pages 657-672.
    6. Ijaz Rehman & Muhammad Shahbaz, 2014. "Multivariate-based Granger causality between financial deepening and poverty: the case of Pakistan," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 48(6), pages 3221-3241, November.
    7. Chen, Shengming & Hassan, Muhammad Shahid & Latif, Ayesha & Rafay, Abdul & Mahmood, Haider & Xu, Xiaowei, 2023. "Investigating resource curse/blessing hypothesis: An empirical insights from Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Portugal economies," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    8. Abdul Rahim Ridzuan & Shahsuzan Zakaria & Bayu Arie Fianto & Nora Yusma Mohamed Yusoff & Nor Fatimah Che Sulaiman & Mohamad Idham Md Razak & Siswantini Siswantini & Arsiyanti Lestari, 2021. "Nexus between Financial Development and Income Inequality before Pandemic Covid-19: Does Financial Kuznets Curve Exist in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Philippines?," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 11(2), pages 260-271.
    9. Cong Minh Huynh & Nam Hoai Tran, 2023. "Financial development, income inequality, and institutional quality: A multi-dimensional analysis," Cogent Economics & Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 11(2), pages 2242128-224, June.
    10. Uddin, Gazi Salah & Shahbaz, Muhammad & Arouri, Mohamed & Teulon, Frédéric, 2014. "Financial development and poverty reduction nexus: A cointegration and causality analysis in Bangladesh," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 405-412.
    11. Egla Mansi & Eglantina Hysa & Mirela Panait & Marian Catalin Voica, 2020. "Poverty—A Challenge for Economic Development? Evidences from Western Balkan Countries and the European Union," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-24, September.
    12. Koçak Emrah & Uzay Nısfet, 2019. "The effect of financial development on income inequality in Turkey: An estimate of the Greenwood-Jovanovic hypothesis," Review of Economic Perspectives, Sciendo, vol. 19(4), pages 319-344, December.
    13. Abosedra, Salah & Shahbaz, Muhammad & Nawaz, Kishwar, 2015. "Modeling Causality between Financial Deepening and Poverty Reduction in Egypt," MPRA Paper 67166, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 09 Oct 2015.
    14. Shahbaz, Muhammad, 2010. "Does financial instability increase environmental pollution in Pakistan?," MPRA Paper 31360, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 28 Mar 2011.
    15. Mariana Hatmanu & Cristina Cautisanu & Mihaela Ifrim, 2020. "The Impact of Interest Rate, Exchange Rate and European Business Climate on Economic Growth in Romania: An ARDL Approach with Structural Breaks," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-23, April.
    16. Mehmet Akif Destek & Avik Sinha & Samuel Asumadu Sarkodie, 2020. "The relationship between financial development and income inequality in Turkey," Journal of Economic Structures, Springer;Pan-Pacific Association of Input-Output Studies (PAPAIOS), vol. 9(1), pages 1-14, December.
    17. Mahmood, Haider & Chaudhary, A. R., 2013. "Impact of FDI on Income Inequality in Pakistan," MPRA Paper 109460, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    18. Carolyn Chisadza & Mduduzi Biyase, 2023. "Financial Development and Income Inequality: Evidence From Advanced, Emerging and Developing Economies," Annals of Financial Economics (AFE), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 18(01), pages 1-27, March.
    19. Muhammad, Shahbaz & Reza, Sherafatian-Jahromi & Muhammad, Nasir Malik, 2012. "Linkages between Defence Spending and Income Inequality in Iran," MPRA Paper 41983, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 14 Oct 2012.
    20. Muhammad Shahbaz & Nanthakumar Loganathan & Aviral Tiwari & Reza Sherafatian-Jahromi, 2015. "Financial Development and Income Inequality: Is There Any Financial Kuznets Curve in Iran?," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 124(2), pages 357-382, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:11:p:6411-:d:568963. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.