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Income distribution is how a nation's GDP is distributed to its population. The two functions of an economy are to produce and distribute value such that this is a fundamental type of economic indicator. An economy that doesn't distribute value in some reasonable way is dysfunctional. All countries have a pattern of unequal income distribution whereby the bottom 20% make a fraction of the top 20%. Generally speaking, this ratio is worse in developing countries such that more even income distribution is a hallmark of economic development. This can be seen in the following income distribution data for nations.
Country | Income of lowest 20% | Income of highest 20% | South Africa | 2.4 | 68.2 | Namibia | 2.8 | 63.7 | Zambia | 2.9 | 61.3 | Eswatini | 3.7 | 60.2 | Mozambique | 4.2 | 59.5 | Botswana | 3.9 | 58.5 | Brazil | 3.1 | 58.4 | Honduras | 3.0 | 56.1 | Angola | 3.8 | 55.6 | Colombia | 4.0 | 55.4 | St. Lucia | 3.1 | 55.4 | Costa Rica | 4.4 | 54.0 | Panama | 3.6 | 53.6 | Seychelles | 5.4 | 53.0 | Nicaragua | 5.1 | 52.1 | Benin | 3.2 | 52.1 | Malawi | 6.4 | 51.7 | Mexico | 5.4 | 51.7 | Paraguay | 4.7 | 51.7 | Cameroon | 4.5 | 51.7 | Chile | 5.8 | 51.3 | Zimbabwe | 6.0 | 51.1 | Ecuador | 4.6 | 51.0 | Philippines | 5.7 | 50.9 | Rwanda | 6.0 | 50.8 | Comoros | 4.5 | 50.4 | Dominican Republic | 5.8 | 50.1 | Uganda | 6.1 | 49.8 | Lesotho | 4.6 | 49.8 | Madagascar | 5.7 | 49.4 | Togo | 5.0 | 48.6 | Ghana | 4.7 | 48.6 | Turkey | 5.8 | 48.5 | Congo | 5.5 | 48.4 | Peru | 4.9 | 48.3 | Tanzania | 6.9 | 48.1 | Cote d'Ivoire | 5.7 | 47.8 | Sri Lanka | 7.0 | 47.6 | Kenya | 6.2 | 47.5 | Iran | 5.9 | 47.3 | Malaysia | 5.8 | 47.3 | Bolivia | 4.6 | 47.2 | Haiti | 5.5 | 47.1 | Morocco | 6.7 | 47.0 | United States | 5.1 | 46.8 | Bulgaria | 5.7 | 46.6 | Argentina | 5.0 | 46.5 | Samoa | 6.8 | 46.4 | Burundi | 6.9 | 46.3 | Indonesia | 6.7 | 46.1 | Uruguay | 5.9 | 45.9 | Tonga | 6.8 | 45.4 | China | 6.5 | 45.3 | Russian Federation | 7.1 | 45.1 | Fiji | 7.5 | 44.7 | Yemen | 7.3 | 44.7 | El Salvador | 6.4 | 44.7 | Laos | 7.6 | 44.6 | Mauritius | 7.2 | 44.6 | Solomon Islands | 7.0 | 44.6 | Bhutan | 6.7 | 44.4 | Gabon | 6.0 | 44.4 | Burkina Faso | 8.3 | 44.3 | Montenegro | 5.2 | 44.3 | Sierra Leone | 7.9 | 44.2 | Israel | 5.1 | 44.2 | Thailand | 7.2 | 44.0 | Lithuania | 6.3 | 43.9 | Gambia | 7.4 | 43.6 | Georgia | 6.5 | 43.2 | Armenia | 8.1 | 43.0 | Ethiopia | 7.3 | 43.0 | Vietnam | 6.7 | 42.9 | Pakistan | 8.9 | 42.8 | Liberia | 7.2 | 42.8 | Niger | 7.8 | 42.4 | Sudan | 7.8 | 42.4 | Latvia | 6.7 | 42.4 | Australia | 7.4 | 42.1 | United Kingdom | 7.1 | 42.1 | Italy | 6.0 | 42.1 | Tajikistan | 7.4 | 41.7 | Portugal | 7.4 | 41.6 | Guinea | 7.6 | 41.5 | Serbia | 5.2 | 41.5 | Bangladesh | 8.6 | 41.4 | Luxembourg | 6.5 | 41.4 | Ireland | 7.9 | 41.2 | Japan | 7.7 | 41.1 | West Bank and Gaza | 7.3 | 41.1 | Greece | 6.6 | 41.1 | Guatemala | 4.5 | 41.1 | Egypt | 9.0 | 41.0 | Spain | 6.2 | 41.0 | Romania | 5.3 | 41.0 | Mongolia | 7.9 | 40.9 | Tunisia | 7.8 | 40.9 | Albania | 7.5 | 40.7 | Switzerland | 7.7 | 40.6 | Canada | 6.7 | 40.6 | Cyprus | 8.4 | 40.2 | Mauritania | 7.5 | 40.2 | France | 8.1 | 40.0 | Myanmar | 8.9 | 39.9 | Maldives | 8.3 | 39.8 | North Macedonia | 5.6 | 39.7 | Germany | 7.6 | 39.6 | South Korea | 7.3 | 39.0 | Kosovo | 9.2 | 38.6 | Hungary | 7.9 | 38.5 | Estonia | 8.1 | 38.4 | Poland | 8.3 | 38.2 | United Arab Emirates | 6.2 | 38.2 | Denmark | 9.1 | 38.1 | Malta | 8.5 | 38.0 | Croatia | 7.4 | 37.9 | Kyrgyz Republic | 9.9 | 37.8 | Austria | 8.0 | 37.8 | Netherlands | 8.8 | 37.6 | Kazakhstan | 9.8 | 37.4 | Sweden | 8.3 | 37.1 | Finland | 9.4 | 36.9 | Iceland | 9.5 | 36.5 | Belgium | 8.7 | 36.3 | Ukraine | 9.9 | 36.1 | Moldova | 10.2 | 36.0 | Norway | 8.9 | 36.0 | Belarus | 10.1 | 35.5 | Czech Republic | 10.2 | 35.4 | Slovenia | 10.0 | 34.4 | Slovak Republic | 8.7 | 34.0 | This data can also be viewed as a ratio here.
NotesG20 countries are highlighted in bold. Data not available for all countries including the G20 nations India and Saudi Arabia. Data is 2012-2018.The data above represents income and estimates of income based on consumption. Wealth data tends to produce a greater disparity.
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Type | | Definition | How a nation's GDP is distributed to its population. | Related Concepts | |
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