SOAS Research Online

Abstract

This study examines the size distribution of income and the degree of inequality in Iraq in 1971, by region, governorate and for the country as a whole, for households, individuals and socio-economic groups. It also examines changes in income distribution since 1954. The main findings are that the share of wages in national income declined from 1964 to 1971, and that wage rates in the oil, government and manufacturing sectors grew slower than did per capita income. From 1954 to 1961 there was a slight decline in inequality, but a sharp increase from 1961 to 1968. From 1968 to 1971 inequality again decreased in terms of both cash and adjusted income. In 1971, the degree of inequality was less when incomes were adjusted for such items as imputed rent and income in kind. The distribution for individuals was more equal than, that for households. There was a more unequal distribution in urban areas and the average incomes in urban are sis were greater than those of rural areas. Average incomes and the degree of inequality were higher in the Central region than in the Northern and Southern regions. Interregional comparisons of rural and urban distributions show rursil inequality to have been less than urban inequaG.ity in the Northern and Southern regions, while the reverse was true for the Central region. Both industrial and agricultural output, education and health services are concentrated in the Central region, where productivity and growth rates were highest during the 1956 to 1971 period. Highly skilled and qualified labour was also concentrated in the Central region - especially in Baghdad - where its income was, on average, one third higher than in the Southern region and one quarter higher than in the Northern region. The Kuznets hypothesis was supported by the data for the rural areas but not the urban areas or the country as a whole. In the rural areas equality was found to have been inversely related to the rate of population growth and the degree of urbanization and positively related to the primary school enrolment rate. In urban areas, equality was positively related to urbanization and population growth and to the urban literacy rate. The share of industry in GNP was inversely related to equality.