The OECD Income Distribution database (IDD) has been developed to benchmark and monitor countries' performance in the field of income inequality and poverty. It contains a number of standardised indicators based on the central concept of "equivalised household disposable income", i.e. the total income received by the households less the current taxes and transfers they pay, adjusted for household size with an equivalence scale. While household income is only one of the factors shaping people's economic well-being, it is also the one for which comparable data for all OECD countries are most common. Income distribution has a long-standing tradition among household-level statistics, with regular data collections going back to the 1980s (and sometimes earlier) in many OECD countries.

Achieving comparability in this field is a challenge, as national practices differ widely in terms of concepts, measures, and statistical sources. In order to maximise international comparability as well as inter-temporal consistency of data, the IDD data collection and compilation process is based on a common set of statistical conventions (e.g. on income concepts and components). The information obtained by the OECD through a network of national data providers, via a standardized questionnaire, is based on national sources that are deemed to be most representative for each country.

Small changes in estimates between years should be treated with caution as they may not be statistically significant.

Fore more details, please refer to: https://www.oecd.org/els/soc/IDD-Metadata.pdf and https://www.oecd.org/social/income-distribution-database.htm

Cross-national research on the causes and consequences of income inequality has been hindered by the limitations of the existing inequality datasets: greater coverage across countries and over time has been available from these sources only at the cost of significantly reduced comparability across observations. The goal of the Standardized World Income Inequality Database (SWIID) is to meet the needs of those engaged in broadly cross-national research by maximizing the comparability of income inequality data while maintaining the widest possible coverage across countries and over time. The SWIID’s income inequality estimates are based on thousands of reported Gini indices from hundreds of published sources, including the OECD Income Distribution Database, the Socio-Economic Database for Latin America and the Caribbean generated by CEDLAS and the World Bank, Eurostat, the World Bank’s PovcalNet, the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, national statistical offices around the world, and academic studies while minimizing reliance on problematic assumptions by using as much information as possible from proximate years within the same country. The data collected and harmonized by the Luxembourg Income Study is employed as the standard. The SWIID currently incorporates comparable Gini indices of disposable and market income inequality for 199 countries for as many years as possible from 1960 to the present; it also includes information on absolute and relative redistribution.

Of the countries included, South Africa had the highest income inequality, with a Gini coefficient of 0.62. It was also the country with the highest inequality level worldwide. Of the OECD members, Costa Rica had the highest income inequality, whereas Slovakia had the lowest.

This is the data used in the research "Complexity Inequality and Internet". Inequality is quantified using the Gini coefficient after taxes and transfers, sourced from the Standardized World Income Inequality Database, incorporating data from the OECD, World Bank, and ECLAC (Solt, 2020). Explanatory variables include the Economic Complexity Index (ECI) from the Atlas of Economic Complexity (The Growth Lab at Harvard University, 2019), normalized within a range of -3 to +3; real GDP per capita in 2017 US dollars from the Penn World Table (Feenstra, et al., 2015); and internet access, measured as the percentage of the population using this service (The World Bank, 2023). The dataset comprises 126 countries with data spanning from 1995 to 2020.

South Africa had the highest inequality in income distribution in 2024, with a Gini score of **. Its South African neighbor, Namibia, followed in second. The Gini coefficient measures the deviation of income (or consumption) distribution among individuals or households within a country from a perfectly equal distribution. A value of 0 represents absolute equality, and a value of 100 represents absolute inequality. All the 20 most unequal countries in the world were either located in Africa or Latin America & The Caribbean.

In 2023, the United States had the highest gross household disposable income per capita in OECD countries adjusted for purchasing power parity. Their disposable income per capita was over ****** U.S. dollars. Luxembourg followed in second with around ****** U.S. dollars, with Switzerland in third.

Costa Rica CR: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data was reported at 0.099 % in 2019. This records a decrease from the previous number of 0.168 % for 2018. Costa Rica CR: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data is updated yearly, averaging 0.845 % from Dec 1960 to 2019, with 60 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 7.978 % in 1983 and a record low of -0.002 % in 1996. Costa Rica CR: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Costa Rica – Table CR.World Bank.WDI: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Net official development assistance (ODA) consists of disbursements of loans made on concessional terms (net of repayments of principal) and grants by official agencies of the members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), by multilateral institutions, and by non-DAC countries to promote economic development and welfare in countries and territories in the DAC list of ODA recipients. It includes loans with a grant element of at least 25 percent (calculated at a rate of discount of 10 percent).; ; Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: www.oecd.org/dac/stats/idsonline. World Bank GNI estimates are used for the denominator.; Weighted average;

The Comparative Political Economy Database (CPEDB) began at the Centre for Learning, Social Economy and Work (CLSEW) at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto (OISE/UT) as part of the Changing Workplaces in a Knowledge Economy (CWKE) project. This data base was initially conceived and developed by Dr. Wally Seccombe (independent scholar) and Dr. D.W. Livingstone (Professor Emeritus at the University of Toronto). Seccombe has conducted internationally recognized historical research on evolving family structures of the labouring classes (A Millennium of Family Change: Feudalism to Capitalism in Northwestern Europe and Weathering the Storm: Working Class Families from the Industrial Revolution to the Fertility Decline). Livingstone has conducted decades of empirical research on class and labour relations. A major part of this research has used the Canadian Class Structure survey done at the Institute of Political Economy (IPE) at Carleton University in 1982 as a template for Canadian national surveys in 1998, 2004, 2010 and 2016, culminating in Tipping Point for Advanced Capitalism: Class, Class Consciousness and Activism in the ‘Knowledge Economy’ (https://fernwoodpublishing.ca/book/tipping-point-for-advanced-capitalism) and a publicly accessible data base including all five of these Canadian surveys (https://borealisdata.ca/dataverse/CanadaWorkLearningSurveys1998-2016). Seccombe and Livingstone have collaborated on a number of research studies that recognize the need to take account of expanded modes of production and reproduction. Both Seccombe and Livingstone are Research Associates of CLSEW at OISE/UT. The CPEDB Main File (an SPSS data file) covers the following areas (in order): demography, family/household, class/labour, government, electoral democracy, inequality (economic, political & gender), health, environment, internet, macro-economic and financial variables. In its present form, it contains annual data on 725 variables from 12 countries (alphabetically listed): Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Japan, Norway, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom and United States. A few of the variables date back to 1928, and the majority date from 1960 to 1990. Where these years are not covered in the source, a minority of variables begin with more recent years. All the variables end at the most recent available year (1999 to 2022). In the next version developed in 2025, the most recent years (2023 and 2024) will be added whenever they are present in the sources’ datasets. For researchers who are not using SPSS, refer to the Chart files for overviews, summaries and information on the dataset. For a current list of the variable names and their labels in the CPEDB data base, see the excel file: Outline of SPSS file Main CPEDB, Nov 6, 2023. At the end of each variable label in this file and the SPSS datafile, you will find the source of that variable in a bracket. If I have combined two variables from a given source, the bracket will begin with WS and then register the variables combined. In the 14 variables David created at the beginning of the Class Labour section, you will find DWL in these brackets with his description as to how it was derived. The CPEDB’s variables have been derived from many databases; the main ones are OECD (their Statistics and Family Databases), World Bank, ILO, IMF, WHO, WIID (World Income Inequality Database), OWID (Our World in Data), Parlgov (Parliaments and Governments Database), and V-Dem (Varieties of Democracy). The Institute for Political Economy at Carleton University is currently the main site for continuing refinement of the CPEDB. IPE Director Justin Paulson and other members are involved along with Seccombe and Livingstone in further development and safe storage of this updated database both at the IPE at Carleton and the UT dataverse. All those who explore the CPEDB are invited to share their perceptions of the entire database, or any of its sections, with Seccombe generally (wseccombe@sympatico.ca) and Livingstone for class/labour issues (davidlivingstone@utoronto.ca). They welcome any suggestions for additional variables together with their data sources. A new version CPEDB will be created in the spring of 2025 and installed as soon as the revision is completed. This revised version is intended to be a valuable resource for researchers in all of the included countries as well as Canada.

Comparing the *** selected regions regarding the gini index , South Africa is leading the ranking (**** points) and is followed by Namibia with **** points. At the other end of the spectrum is Slovakia with **** points, indicating a difference of *** points to South Africa. The Gini coefficient here measures the degree of income inequality on a scale from * (=total equality of incomes) to *** (=total inequality).The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in more than *** countries and regions worldwide. All input data are sourced from international institutions, national statistical offices, and trade associations. All data has been are processed to generate comparable datasets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).

Morocco MA: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data was reported at 1.959 % in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 1.493 % for 2015. Morocco MA: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data is updated yearly, averaging 2.067 % from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 6.067 % in 1981 and a record low of 0.876 % in 2002. Morocco MA: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Morocco – Table MA.World Bank: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Net official development assistance (ODA) consists of disbursements of loans made on concessional terms (net of repayments of principal) and grants by official agencies of the members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), by multilateral institutions, and by non-DAC countries to promote economic development and welfare in countries and territories in the DAC list of ODA recipients. It includes loans with a grant element of at least 25 percent (calculated at a rate of discount of 10 percent).; ; Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: www.oecd.org/dac/stats/idsonline. World Bank GNI estimates are used for the denominator.; Weighted Average;

Estonia Net Official Development Assistance Provided: % of Gross National Income data was reported at 0.165 % in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 0.190 % for 2016. Estonia Net Official Development Assistance Provided: % of Gross National Income data is updated yearly, averaging 0.104 % from Dec 2004 (Median) to 2017, with 14 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 0.190 % in 2016 and a record low of 0.046 % in 2004. Estonia Net Official Development Assistance Provided: % of Gross National Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Estonia – Table EE.World Bank.WDI: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Net Official development assistance (ODA) comprises grants or loans to developing countries and territories on the OECD/DAC list of aid recipients that are undertaken by the official sector with promotion of economic development and welfare as the main objective and at concessional financial terms. It is shown as a share of donors' GNI.;Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: https://data-explorer.oecd.org/.;;

Out of all OECD countries, Cost Rica had the highest poverty rate as of 2022, at over 20 percent. The country with the second highest poverty rate was the United States, with 18 percent. On the other end of the scale, Czechia had the lowest poverty rate at 6.4 percent, followed by Denmark.

The significance of the OECD

The OECD, or the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, was founded in 1948 and is made up of 38 member countries. It seeks to improve the economic and social well-being of countries and their populations. The OECD looks at issues that impact people’s everyday lives and proposes policies that can help to improve the quality of life.

Poverty in the United States

In 2022, there were nearly 38 million people living below the poverty line in the U.S.. About one fourth of the Native American population lived in poverty in 2022, the most out of any ethnicity. In addition, the rate was higher among young women than young men. It is clear that poverty in the United States is a complex, multi-faceted issue that affects millions of people and is even more complex to solve.

Lebanon LB: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data was reported at 2.337 % in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 1.996 % for 2015. Lebanon LB: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data is updated yearly, averaging 1.704 % from Dec 1989 (Median) to 2016, with 28 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 8.255 % in 1990 and a record low of 1.084 % in 2005. Lebanon LB: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Lebanon – Table LB.World Bank.WDI: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Net official development assistance (ODA) consists of disbursements of loans made on concessional terms (net of repayments of principal) and grants by official agencies of the members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), by multilateral institutions, and by non-DAC countries to promote economic development and welfare in countries and territories in the DAC list of ODA recipients. It includes loans with a grant element of at least 25 percent (calculated at a rate of discount of 10 percent).; ; Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: www.oecd.org/dac/stats/idsonline. World Bank GNI estimates are used for the denominator.; Weighted average;

Tanzania TZ: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data was reported at 4.941 % in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 5.755 % for 2015. Tanzania TZ: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data is updated yearly, averaging 11.771 % from Dec 1988 (Median) to 2016, with 29 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 30.222 % in 1992 and a record low of 4.941 % in 2016. Tanzania TZ: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Tanzania – Table TZ.World Bank: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Net official development assistance (ODA) consists of disbursements of loans made on concessional terms (net of repayments of principal) and grants by official agencies of the members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), by multilateral institutions, and by non-DAC countries to promote economic development and welfare in countries and territories in the DAC list of ODA recipients. It includes loans with a grant element of at least 25 percent (calculated at a rate of discount of 10 percent).; ; Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: www.oecd.org/dac/stats/idsonline. World Bank GNI estimates are used for the denominator.; Weighted Average;

Netherlands NL: Net Official Development Assistance Provided: % of Gross National Income data was reported at 0.649 % in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 0.749 % for 2015. Netherlands NL: Net Official Development Assistance Provided: % of Gross National Income data is updated yearly, averaging 0.801 % from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1.073 % in 1982 and a record low of 0.259 % in 1963. Netherlands NL: Net Official Development Assistance Provided: % of Gross National Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Netherlands – Table NL.World Bank.WDI: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Net Official development assistance (ODA) comprises grants or loans to developing countries and territories on the OECD/DAC list of aid recipients that are undertaken by the official sector with promotion of economic development and welfare as the main objective and at concessional financial terms. It is shown as a share of donors' GNI.; ; Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: www.oecd.org/dac/stats/idsonline.; ;

Slovakia SK: Net Official Development Assistance Provided: To The Least Developed Countries: % of Gross National Income data was reported at 0.001 % in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 0.001 % for 2015. Slovakia SK: Net Official Development Assistance Provided: To The Least Developed Countries: % of Gross National Income data is updated yearly, averaging 0.002 % from Dec 2002 (Median) to 2016, with 14 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 0.032 % in 2006 and a record low of 0.001 % in 2009. Slovakia SK: Net Official Development Assistance Provided: To The Least Developed Countries: % of Gross National Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Slovakia – Table SK.World Bank: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Net Official development assistance (ODA) comprises grants or loans to developing countries and territories on the OECD/DAC list of aid recipients that are undertaken by the official sector with promotion of economic development and welfare as the main objective and at concessional financial terms. The list of least developed countries (LDCs) has been agreed by the General Assembly, on the recommendation of the Committee for Development Policy, Economic and Social Council. Series is shown as a share of donors' GNI.; ; Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: www.oecd.org/dac/stats/idsonline.; ;

Netherlands NL: Net Official Development Assistance Provided: To The Least Developed Countries: % of Gross National Income data was reported at 0.066 % in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 0.061 % for 2015. Netherlands NL: Net Official Development Assistance Provided: To The Least Developed Countries: % of Gross National Income data is updated yearly, averaging 0.155 % from Dec 1965 (Median) to 2016, with 51 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 0.246 % in 1984 and a record low of 0.000 % in 1968. Netherlands NL: Net Official Development Assistance Provided: To The Least Developed Countries: % of Gross National Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Netherlands – Table NL.World Bank: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Net Official development assistance (ODA) comprises grants or loans to developing countries and territories on the OECD/DAC list of aid recipients that are undertaken by the official sector with promotion of economic development and welfare as the main objective and at concessional financial terms. The list of least developed countries (LDCs) has been agreed by the General Assembly, on the recommendation of the Committee for Development Policy, Economic and Social Council. Series is shown as a share of donors' GNI.; ; Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: www.oecd.org/dac/stats/idsonline.; ;

Dominican Republic DO: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Imports of Goods, Services and Primary Income data was reported at 0.721 % in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 1.188 % for 2015. Dominican Republic DO: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Imports of Goods, Services and Primary Income data is updated yearly, averaging 2.386 % from Dec 1968 (Median) to 2016, with 49 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 22.370 % in 1968 and a record low of -0.029 % in 1993. Dominican Republic DO: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Imports of Goods, Services and Primary Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Dominican Republic – Table DO.World Bank: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Net official development assistance (ODA) consists of disbursements of loans made on concessional terms (net of repayments of principal) and grants by official agencies of the members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), by multilateral institutions, and by non-DAC countries to promote economic development and welfare in countries and territories in the DAC list of ODA recipients. It includes loans with a grant element of at least 25 percent (calculated at a rate of discount of 10 percent).; ; Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: www.oecd.org/dac/stats/idsonline. World Bank imports of good and services estimates are used for the denominator.; Weighted Average;

Egypt EG: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data was reported at 0.649 % in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 0.764 % for 2015. Egypt EG: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data is updated yearly, averaging 2.357 % from Dec 1965 (Median) to 2016, with 52 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 22.453 % in 1975 and a record low of 0.146 % in 1969. Egypt EG: Net Official Development Assistance Received: % of Gross National Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Egypt – Table EG.World Bank: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Net official development assistance (ODA) consists of disbursements of loans made on concessional terms (net of repayments of principal) and grants by official agencies of the members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), by multilateral institutions, and by non-DAC countries to promote economic development and welfare in countries and territories in the DAC list of ODA recipients. It includes loans with a grant element of at least 25 percent (calculated at a rate of discount of 10 percent).; ; Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: www.oecd.org/dac/stats/idsonline. World Bank GNI estimates are used for the denominator.; Weighted Average;

Poland PL: Net Official Development Assistance Provided: % of Gross National Income data was reported at 0.147 % in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 0.096 % for 2015. Poland PL: Net Official Development Assistance Provided: % of Gross National Income data is updated yearly, averaging 0.084 % from Dec 1998 (Median) to 2016, with 18 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 0.147 % in 2016 and a record low of 0.012 % in 1998. Poland PL: Net Official Development Assistance Provided: % of Gross National Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Poland – Table PL.World Bank.WDI: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Net Official development assistance (ODA) comprises grants or loans to developing countries and territories on the OECD/DAC list of aid recipients that are undertaken by the official sector with promotion of economic development and welfare as the main objective and at concessional financial terms. It is shown as a share of donors' GNI.; ; Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: www.oecd.org/dac/stats/idsonline.; ;