How Enhancing Information and Communication Technology Has Affected Inequality in Africa for Sustainable Development: An Empirical Investigation

Abstract

Disclaimer: AFEA Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) that has been peerreviewed and forthcoming in scientific outlets. There is a tacit acknowledgement of anonymous referees for constructive suggestions and critiques that have helped improve the content and rigour of the study. Each research stands on its merit and the views expressed in AFEA Working Papers are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the AFEA, its Executive Board, or AFEA management. AbstractThis study examines if enhancing ICT reduces inequality in 48 countries in Africa for the period 2004-2014. Three inequality indictors are used, namely, the: Gini coefficient, Atkinson index and Palma ratio. The adopted ICT indicators include: mobile phone penetration, internet penetration and fixed broadband subscriptions. The empirical evidence is based on the Generalised Method of Moments. Enhancing internet penetration and fixed broadband subscriptions have a net effect on reducing the Gini coefficient and the Atkinson index, whereas increasing mobile phone penetration and internet penetration reduces the Palma ratio. Policy implications are discussed in the light of challenges to Sustainable Development Goals. JEL Classification: G20; I10; I32; O40; O55

How Enhancing Gender Inclusion Affects Inequality: Thresholds of Complementary Policies for Sustainable Development

“…This study focuses on forty-two African countries with annual data from 2004 to The three inequality indicators are consistent with recent income inequality literature in Africa (Tchamyou, 2019a(Tchamyou, , 2019bAsongu & Odhiambo, 2019b) while the adopted gender inclusion variables are also in accordance with recent literature on the participation of women in the formal economic sector (Efobi et al, 2018). The three control variables are also motivated by recent inclusive human development and income inequality literature (Anyanwu, 2011;Tchamyou et al, 2019;Asongu & Odhiambo, 2018b;Meniago & Asongu, 2018).…”

“…n.a: not applicable because at least one estimated coefficient needed for the computation of net effects is not significant. In order to investigate the overall effect of enhancing gender inclusion on inequality, net effects are computed, in accordance with the contemporary literature on interactive regressions (Asongu & Odhiambo, 2019b;Tchamyou et al, 2019). For example, in the penultimate column of Table 1,…”

How enhancing gender inclusion affects inequality: Thresholds of complementary policies for sustainable development

“…In order to investigate the overall effect of enhancing gender inclusion on inequality, net effects are computed, in accordance with the contemporary literature on interactive regressions (Asongu & Odhiambo, ; Tchamyou et al, ). For example, in the penultimate column of Table , the net impact on the Gini index from the enhancement of female employment is 0.010 (2 × [0.00009 × 113.19] + [−0.010]).…”

Toward achieving environmental sustainability target in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development countries: The role of real income, research and development, and transport infrastructure

“…However, sustainable development has remained the key focus in the last two decades (Danish & Wang, ). Several studies have determined the relation of sustainable development with different factors including environmental policy and renewable energy (Fotis & Polemis, ); human development (S. A. Asongu & Odhiambo, ); natural capital utilization (Hou, Liu, & Zhang, ); technological innovation (Tabrizian, ); information and communication technology (S. A. Asongu & Odhiambo, ), and inclusive development (S. Asongu & Odhiambo, ; Z. Wang, Danish, Zhang, & Wang, ). Also, most studies in the energy–environment literature analyze the relationships among energy consumption, economic growth, and CO 2 emissions.…”