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Brazil makes progress in reducing social inequality: OECD

Xinhua, May 22, 2015 Adjust font size:

Brazil has managed to reduce social inequality, according to a new report from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) released on Thursday, local governmental news Agencia Brasil said.

Brazil and other Latin American countries such as Argentina, Chile, Mexico and Peru showed progress in reducing inequality. Despite that, the gap between the rich and poor still remains high in Latin America, the OECD reported.

Brazil's Gini index, which measures inequality in a country, fell from 0.6 in the 1990s to 0.56 now. The index goes from 0 to 1, and the closer to 1, the more unequal a country is.

Despite the advance, Brazil has a long way to reach 0.32, the average Gini index of the OECD member countries.

Among BRICS countries, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, Brazil has the second highest Gini index after South Africa.

According to the report, Brazil and other emerging economies did make efforts to tackle inequality by reinforcing social protection measures and carrying out wealth distribution programs.

The report highlighted that, in Brazil, the expansion of access to education and policies of minimum wage rise helped reduce inequality in the work force, and minimum income initiatives such as Brazil's renowned Bolsa Familia program also have contributed to the efforts.

OECD recommended other measures to promote equality, such as more investment in education and in gender equality and more redistribution of resources. Endi