Published on September 21, 2026 – Updated on September 21, 2026

Research focus


Florent Bresson
Associate Professor, HDR
CERDI-UCA-CNRS-IRD

Reducing inequality is often seen as one of the most effective ways to combat poverty (de Schutter, 2024). However, similar reductions in inequality can have very different effects on poverty. Lowering an inequality index does not necessarily reduce poverty; the resulting income gains must actually reach the poorest people.

In an article published in World Development, Florent Bresson develops a method for measuring how sensitive poverty is to changes in inequality and apply it to Brazil between 1981 and 2022.
 
Read the article blog in French
 

Référence de l’article

Florent Bresson, Assessing the sensitivity of poverty to inequality: A method and an application to Brazil, 1981–2022, World Development, vol. 208, 2026, article 107533.

Références bibliographiques

Bergstrom, K. (2022). The role of income inequality for poverty reduction. World Bank Economic Review, 36(3), 583–604.
De Schutter, O. (2024). Eradicating poverty beyond growth. Report A/HRC/56/61. United Nations.
Kakwani, N. (1993). Poverty and economic growth with application to côte d’ivoire. Review of Income & Wealth, 39(2), 121–139.


Cover photo © IRD - Daina Rechner