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Income Inequality In Colonial Africa: Building Social Tables For Pre-Independence Central African Republic, Ivory Coast And Senegal

Author

Listed:
  • Alfani, Guido

    (Bocconi University, IGIER and Dondena Centre)

  • Tadei, Federico

    (Universitat de Barcelona)

Abstract

Today, income inequality in Sub-Saharan Africa is exceptionally high. In this paper, we study whether present-day inequality can be traced back to the colonial period by reconstructing income distributions in a sample of representative colonies. To do so, we use data from colonial records to build new social tables for French colonies in West and Central Africa and we combine them with available information on British colonies in East and Southern Africa. We find that inequality in Africa is not a recent phenomenon. Income inequality was extremely high during the colonial period, in particular because of the huge income differential between Africans and European settlers. Nevertheless, it tended to reduce over time and the post-colonial period is characterized by much lower inequality. Interestingly, the decline of inequality is not necessarily a consequence of independence: the trends toward reduction started under colonial rule.

Suggested Citation

  • Alfani, Guido & Tadei, Federico, 2017. "Income Inequality In Colonial Africa: Building Social Tables For Pre-Independence Central African Republic, Ivory Coast And Senegal," African Economic History Working Paper 33/2017, African Economic History Network.
    • Handle: RePEc:hhs:afekhi:2017_033
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    Cited by:

    1. Sédi-Anne Boukaka & Giulia Mancini & Giovanni Vecchi, 2021. "Poverty and inequality in Francophone Africa, 1960s–2010s," Economic History of Developing Regions, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(1), pages 1-29, January.
    2. von Fintel, Dieter & Links, Calumet & Green, Erik, 2023. "Estimating Historical Inequality from Social Tables: Towards Methodological Consistency," Lund Papers in Economic History 247, Lund University, Department of Economic History.
    3. Aroop Chatterjee, 2019. "Measuring wealth inequality in South Africa: An agenda," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2019-45, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    4. Alvaredo, Facundo & Cogneau, Denis & Piketty, Thomas, 2021. "Income inequality under colonial rule. Evidence from French Algeria, Cameroon, Tunisia, and Vietnam and comparisons with British colonies 1920–1960," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 152(C).
    5. Epo, Boniface Ngah & Mvomo, Fabrice & Ngoa Tabi, Henri & Atangana Ondoa, Henri, 2024. "Colonial status and income inequality in developing countries," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 36(C).
    6. Ireen Choga & Fiyinfoluwa Giwa, 2023. "The Effect of Property Tax on Income Redistribution in Selected African Countries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-15, March.
    7. Alvaredo, Facundo & Cogneau, Denis & Piketty, Thomas, 2020. "Income inequality under Colonial Rule: Evidence from French Algeria, Cameroon, Tunisia, and Vietnam and comparisons with the Br," CEPR Discussion Papers 14969, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    8. Vito Ricci & Giacomo Zanibelli, 2021. "For a Multidimensional Measure of Land Inequality in 1930s Italy. A Historical-Statistical Analysis," Documentos de Trabajo (DT-AEHE) 2107, Asociación Española de Historia Económica.

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    JEL classification:

    • N17 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - Africa; Oceania
    • O43 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Institutions and Growth

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