Honduras was the country in Latin America with the highest share of population living on less than 3.20 U.S. dollars per day. The Central American nation had 26.4 percent of its population living on less than 3.20 U.S. dollars a day, while Colombia came second highest with 14 percent. On the other hand, Uruguay had only 0.8 percent of poverty headcount ratio, featured as the lowest share in the region.

The average for 2020 based on 10 countries was 30.53 percent. The highest value was in Mexico: 43.9 percent and the lowest value was in Chile: 10.8 percent. The indicator is available from 2000 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Guyana was the South American country 20360the highest gross national income per capita, with 20,360 U.S. dollars per person in 2023. Uruguay ranked second, registering a GNI of 19,530 U.S. dollars per person, based on current prices. Gross national income (GNI) is the aggregated sum of the value added by residents in an economy, plus net taxes (minus subsidies) and net receipts of primary income from abroad. Which are the largest Latin American economies? Based on annual gross domestic product, which is the total amount of goods and services produced in a country per year, Brazil leads the regional ranking, followed by Mexico, Argentina, and Chile. Many Caribbean countries and territories hold the highest GDP per capita in this region, measurement that reflects how GDP would be divided if it was perfectly equally distributed among the population. GNI per capita is, however, a more exact calculation of wealth than GDP per capita, as it takes into consideration taxes paid and income receipts from abroad. How much inequality is there in Latin America? In many Latin American countries, more than half the total wealth created in their economies is held by the richest 20 percent of the population. When a small share of the population concentrates most of the wealth, millions of people don't have enough to make ends meet. For instance, in Brazil, about 5.32 percent of the population lives on less than 3.2 U.S. dollars per day.

In 2023, all selected Latin American countries registered a higher poverty rate for women than for men. Colombia ranked among the highest poverty rates both for males and females only behind Honduras.

In 2025, Brazil and Mexico were expected to be the countries with the largest gross domestic product (GDP) in Latin America and the Caribbean. In that year, Brazil's GDP could reach an estimated value of 2.3 trillion U.S. dollars, whereas Mexico's amounted to almost 1.8 trillion U.S. dollars. GDP is the total value of all goods and services produced in a country in a given year. It measures the economic strength of a country and a positive change indicates economic growth.

Among Latin American countries in 2023, Colombia had the highest share of both Afro-descendants and indigenous people living impoverished, with 45.6 percent and 63.5 percent, respectively. Additionally, Colombia also had the highest share of indigenous people living under extreme poverty that year. Ecuador had the second-highest share of indigenous population whose average per capita income was below the poverty line, with 50.4 percent. Uruguay was the only nation where Afro-descendants were the ethnic group with the largest share of the poor population, as in the other selected countries such group was indigenous people.

This paper presents new data documenting the cost of salaried labor in 20 Latin American and Caribbean countries. We gather data on the three main costs associated to hiring salaried labor; (i) minimum wages and other monetary benefits, (ii) mandated contributions for social insurance and other benefits and (iii) job security provisions. We present two new indicators. First, we calculate the average non-wage cost of salaried labor (NWC). This indicator answers the following question: for the average wage, what additional share of wages must be satisfied by workers and employers to fulfill all the law mandated non-wage costs of a legal salaried relationship. Our second indicator combines these non-wage costs with the nominal restriction that legal wages cannot be lower than the minimum wage. We calculate the annual dollar value of paying a worker the minimum wage plus all mandated non-wage costs as a share of GDP per worker. This constitutes the minimum cost of salaried labor (MCSL). We highlight seven important facts; (i) The average non-wage cost of salaried labor (NWC) for the region is 49% of wages. (ii) There is a large dispersion across countries like Argentina, Brazil and Peru with costs around 70% of wages and countries like Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and Chile with cost less than 40% of wages. (iii) Mandatory contributions are the most important component of the average non-wage cost of salaried labor with 27.3% of wages followed by additional benefits with 13.8% of wages while job security provisions account for another 8.4%. (iv) On average, mandated contributions from employers amount to 17.5% of average annual wages, versus 9.8% of mandated contributions from employees. (v) The minimum cost of salaried labor (MCSL) is on average 39% of GDP per worker. (vi) Variation of the MCSL across countries is even larger. For countries like Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago or the Dominican Republic the MCSL it is below 15% of GDP per worker while the minimum cost of hiring a salaried worker in Honduras is 95% of GDP per capita. (vii) Despite having below average NWC, the five poorest countries in our sample are those presenting the highest MCSL, due to high minimum wages relative to GDP per worker.

Abstract

After years of poor economic performance, many Latin American countries undertook ambitious programs of macroeconomic stabilization and structural reform during recent years. The change in policy created high expectations for the region. Some observers question, however, whether actual growth outcomes in several Latin American countries have measured up to such expectations. This paper offers some evidence that the response of economic growth to reforms in Latin America has not been disappointing. Because of the significant changes in policies achieved in Latin America by the 1990s and in spite of the global slowdown, Latin America did well to return to its historic rate of growth of 2 percent per capita in 1990-93. Latin America growth has responded to changes in policy variables as would have been predicted by the experience of other times and places, as summarized by a panel regression spanning all countries and multi-year periods from 1960 to 1993. In order to obtain consistent estimates of the parameters linking policy variables and growth, this paper uses a dynamic panel methodology that both controls for unobserved time- and country-specific effects and accounts for the likely joint endogeneity of the explanatory variables.

This is the data used in the paper "Has Latin America's Post-Reform Growth Been Disappointing?" by William Easterly, Norman Loayza, and Peter Montiel (Journal of International Economics, 1997).

Kind of data

Aggregate data [agg]

Mode of data collection

Other [oth]

ObjectiveTo determine the extent to which the narrowing of child mortality across wealth gradients has been related to foreign aid to the health sector in low- and middle-income countries.MethodsMortality and wealth data on 989,901 under-5 children from 957,674 households in 49 aid recipient countries in Africa, Asia, South America, and the Caribbean between 1993 and 2012 were used in the analysis. Declines in under-5 mortality in the four poorest wealth quantiles were compared to the decline among the wealthiest at varying levels of health aid per capita using fixed effects multivariable regression models and controlling for maternal education, urbanization, and domestic spending on health among recipient countries.ResultsEach additional dollar in total health aid per capita was associated with 5.7 fewer deaths per 10,000 child-years among children in the poorest relative to the wealthiest households (p

Percentage of households without formal workers, by country and income quintile.

Replacement rate of COVID-19 emergency social assistance by country and income quintile.

Percentage of targeted households by type of monetary transfer, country and income quintiles.

When inflation occurs in a country, the value of the currency decreases. That means that the purchasing power consumers have with a fixed amount of money decreases. Wages, especially lower and middle class wages, usually increase at a MUCH slower rate than prices of consumer goods; so consumers are likely to make the same wage, but are not able to buy the same amount of goods and services. Consumers in countries with hyperinflation suffer greatly because of this economic phenomenon.

Data was downloaded from: Link

For notes/metadata regarding the definition, measurement, or data collection for a certain country or group can be found by downloading the excel file from the linked webpage.

Original data provider: International Monetary Fund, World Development Indicators. License : CC BY-4.0.

INDICATOR_CODE: FP.CPI.TOTL.ZG

INDICATOR_NAME: Inflation, consumer prices (annual %)

SOURCE_NOTE: Inflation as measured by the consumer price index reflects the annual percentage change in the cost to the average consumer of acquiring a basket of goods and services that may be fixed or changed at specified intervals, such as yearly.
The Laspeyres formula is generally used.

Years included: 1960-2016

The following countries have no values for any year:

• Somalia

• Puerto Rico

• Guam

• US Virgin Islands

The dataset also conains some records that refer to groups of countries, which may be useful for those with no recorded values. Some of those groups are:

• Fragile and conflict affected situations

• Heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC)

• Caribbean small states

• Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)

• Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)

• East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)

• East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD countries)

• Least developed countries: UN classification

• Middle East & North Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)

If this data is being used for the Kiva Crowdfunding Data Science for Good event; The following countries (as they are named in this dataset), are named slightly differently in the Kiva dataset (to the best of my knowledge). For example, West Bank in Gaza is referred to as Palestine in the Kiva Dataset.

• Congo, Dem. Rep.

• Congo, Rep.

• Kyrgyz Republic

• Lao PDR

• Myanmar

• West Bank and Gaza

• St. Vincent and the Grenadines

• Virgin Islands (U.S.)

• Yemen, Rep.

Dates of full lockdown.

Explore annual GDP growth rates for various countries with this dataset. Analyze trends and patterns related to GDP growth to make informed decisions. Click here for more information!

GDP growth (annual %), GDP, Growth Rates

Kenya, Spain, Syrian Arab Republic, Bosnia and Herzegovina, El Salvador, Italy, Sint Maarten (Dutch part), Comoros, Kosovo, Argentina, Bulgaria, Guinea-Bissau, Slovenia, Guinea, Belize, Low income, Lower middle income, New Caledonia, St. Kitts and Nevis, Benin, World, Kyrgyz Republic, United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Burundi, Korea, Rep., Low & middle income, Euro area, Libya, Luxembourg, Namibia, Kiribati, India, Burkina Faso, East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income), Tajikistan, Lao PDR, Equatorial Guinea, Niger, Liechtenstein, Palau, Hong Kong SAR, China, Switzerland, Tonga, Qatar, Turkiye, Middle East & North Africa (excluding high income), Indonesia, Iraq, Fiji, Central Europe and the Baltics, Isle of Man, Costa Rica, Finland, Small states, Singapore, Slovak Republic, Netherlands, Turks and Caicos Islands, Europe & Central Asia (IDA & IBRD countries), Japan, Bhutan, Belgium, Australia, Denmark, Heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC), Middle East & North Africa (IDA & IBRD countries), Uzbekistan, Pacific island small states, Mongolia, Gabon, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Ukraine, Venezuela, RB, Latvia, Macao SAR, China, Vietnam, Arab World, Myanmar, Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income), Haiti, Micronesia, Fed. Sts., Nicaragua, Panama, San Marino, Gambia, The, Guatemala, IDA & IBRD total, Azerbaijan, Chad, Zimbabwe, Mali, Bolivia, Grenada, Mexico, East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD countries), Timor-Leste, Dominica, Peru, Malawi, Trinidad and Tobago, Nauru, Monaco, Tuvalu, Egypt, Arab Rep., Virgin Islands (U.S.), Sao Tome and Principe, Cabo Verde, IDA only, Mozambique, Oman, Yemen, Rep., Albania, New Zealand, Latin America & Caribbean, Rwanda, Cameroon, Lesotho, Solomon Islands, Germany, Bangladesh, Papua New Guinea, Maldives, Moldova, Antigua and Barbuda, Congo, Dem. Rep., Romania, Portugal, Africa Western and Central, Mauritius, France, Uruguay, Tanzania, Colombia, South Asia (IDA & IBRD), Honduras, South Sudan, Sudan, Cuba, Least developed countries: UN classification, South Asia, Tunisia, Guyana, Nepal, Barbados, Brunei Darussalam, United States, Canada, Lebanon, Africa Eastern and Southern, Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), Angola, Bahamas, The, Fragile and conflict affected situations, Malta, Middle East & North Africa, Turkmenistan, Cote d'Ivoire, Northern Mariana Islands, Thailand, Seychelles, North Macedonia, Afghanistan, Russian Federation, IBRD only, Iran, Islamic Rep., Malaysia, Djibouti, Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income), Norway, Dominican Republic, French Polynesia, Jordan, Nigeria, Lithuania, Estonia, Eswatini, Vanuatu, Late-demographic dividend, St. Lucia, Cambodia, Curacao, Kuwait, Belarus, American Samoa, Bahrain, Somalia, Pre-demographic dividend, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Jamaica, Ecuador, European Union, Post-demographic dividend, Brazil, Central African Republic, Chile, Puerto Rico, Pakistan, Uganda, United Kingdom, IDA total, Marshall Islands, Czechia, Channel Islands, Poland, Togo, Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries), Sweden, Iceland, Armenia, Georgia, Montenegro, Europe & Central Asia, Hungary, IDA blend, Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries), Paraguay, Zambia, Andorra, OECD members, Bermuda, Early-demographic dividend, Croatia, Upper middle income, Algeria, Samoa, Eritrea, Suriname, Mauritania, Guam, China, Sri Lanka, Congo, Rep., Liberia, Greece, Botswana, East Asia & Pacific, West Bank and Gaza, Philippines, Cayman Islands, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, High income, Serbia, Caribbean small states, Greenland, Cyprus, Aruba, Ireland, Israel, Kazakhstan, Morocco, Madagascar, Other small states, Sub-Saharan Africa, Senegal, Middle income, Austria, North America Follow data.kapsarc.org for timely data to advance energy economics research.

Includes do-file and STATA dta to replicate results. (7Z)

Government expenses on social protection by country in 2019 and 2020 (LCU in millions).

19 of the 20 countries with the lowest estimated GDP per capita in the world in 2024 are located in Sub-Saharan Africa. South Sudan is believed to have a GDP per capita of just 351.02 U.S. dollars - for reference, Luxembourg has the highest GDP per capita in the world, at almost 130,000 U.S. dollars, which is around 400 times larger than that of Burundi (U.S. GDP per capita is over 250 times higher than Burundi's). Poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa Many parts of Sub-Saharan Africa have been among the most impoverished in the world for over a century, due to lacking nutritional and sanitation infrastructures, persistent conflict, and political instability. These issues are also being exacerbated by climate change, where African nations are some of the most vulnerable in the world, as well as the population boom that will place over the 21st century. Of course, the entire population of Sub-Saharan Africa does not live in poverty, and countries in the southern part of the continent, as well as oil-producing states around the Gulf of Guinea, do have some pockets of significant wealth (especially in urban areas). However, while GDP per capita may be higher in these countries, wealth distribution is often very skewed, and GDP per capita figures are not representative of average living standards across the population. Outside of Africa Yemen is the only country outside of Africa to feature on the list, due to decades of civil war and instability. Yemen lags very far behind some of its neighboring Arab states, some of whom rank among the richest in the world due to their much larger energy sectors. Additionally, the IMF does not make estimates for Afghanistan, which would also likely feature on this list.

Emergency social assistance measures.

Based on the degree of inequality in income distribution measured by the Gini coefficient, Colombia was the most unequal country in Latin America as of 2022. Colombia's Gini coefficient amounted to 54.8. The Dominican Republic recorded the lowest Gini coefficient at 37, even below Uruguay and Chile, which are some of the countries with the highest human development indexes in Latin America. The Gini coefficient explained The Gini coefficient measures the deviation of the distribution of income among individuals or households in a given country from a perfectly equal distribution. A value of 0 represents absolute equality, whereas 100 would be the highest possible degree of inequality. This measurement reflects the degree of wealth inequality at a certain moment in time, though it may fail to capture how average levels of income improve or worsen over time. What affects the Gini coefficient in Latin America? Latin America, as other developing regions in the world, generally records high rates of inequality, with a Gini coefficient ranging between 37 and 55 points according to the latest available data from the reporting period 2010-2023. According to the Human Development Report, wealth redistribution by means of tax transfers improves Latin America's Gini coefficient to a lesser degree than it does in advanced economies. Wider access to education and health services, on the other hand, have been proven to have a greater direct effect in improving Gini coefficient measurements in the region.