Inequality And Fragmentation In Our Interconnected World

Inequality and fragmentation in our interconnected world

Introduction

It is strange, a priori, to think about the idea of fragmentation in a world that is increasingly interconnected. Globalization and, together with it, the growing exchange of goods, people and information, seem to make the planet smaller, more within our reach. However, is it so? It is undeniable that technology advances allow unthinkable situations until recently, being the most representative of them that of advances in relation to new information and communication technologies. From that somewhat reductionist perspective of reality, the world seems to be a better place today. But if the subject is deepened and complicated, they can be asked: do they all have access to this new interconnected world?

In this essay, reference will be made to inequalities, understood in simple terms as differences between people. For this, what Bernardo Kliksberg (Argentine, who coined the concept of social management) and Joseph Stiglitz (American, Nobel Prize in the Economy in 2001) will be presented for Bernardo Kliksberg (Argentino. The consequences of inequality and some policies to combat it will be exposed first, first,. Then, it will be discussed about inequality in Latin America and other types of inequalities will be mentioned beyond that determined by income, as well as additional variables to consider to analyze inequality. Finally, some conclusive appreciations will be made.

Developing

Both Kliksberg and Stiglitz argue that inequality is a central problem, for various reasons.

Stiglitz considers that the existence of inequalities indicates, on the one hand, that people are not being used, understood as assets, in the most productive way;on the other, that the economy is not being efficient, since inequality is generated by distortions such as monopoly and preferential tax treatment. Likewise, the Nobel Prize emphasizes that the more a society is divided in terms of wealth, "the more reluct.

Kliksberg, on the other hand, understands that inequality generates a large number of impacts: it reduces the domestic market, limits national savings training rates, productivity decreases, creates inequities in health, causes conflict, promotes crime, weakens cohesionsocial and affects the educational system creating dropout in broad sectors and limiting the opportunity for quality education to marginalized groups.

It can be concluded that for both authors it is important to take into account inequality, since it affects the performance of the national economy and the basic living conditions of people, whose bases are education and health. However, is it feasible to think of facing inequalities? According to Kliksberg, it is, and in this sense the priorities and policies that a society adopts become fundamental. In fact, Latin America, the author points out, very clearly reflects this with the direction that political decisions have been making since 2000. It can be considered that some of the priority policies to reduce inequality are the following:

• Revenue transfers to the most consistent sectors through, for example, universal assignments.
• Democratization of access to new technologies.
• The generation of opportunities for young people and adults to finish high school.
• The realization of vaccination campaigns for children and newborns.
• The extension of the periods by maternity leave and the extension of said benefit to the parents.
• The protection of small and medium enterprises.
• Strengthening the application of antitrust laws.
• The formulation of a fiscal policy that is less flexible with those that have the highest income.
• The expansion of the social protection system to previously marginalized sectors.
• The improvement of income received by retirees and pensioners.
• Investment in education and student enrollment incentive.

Inequality in Latin America

Latin America is usually conceived as one of the most unequal regions of the planet. Four causes of inequality in this region are identified:

1. The impact that the neoliberal policies of the ’90 had, mainly through the minimization of the participation of the State and the numbness that was generated against poverty.
2. The roots of certain wrong conceptions by the hand of neoliberalism, namely: that inequality does not affect growth, that inequality is inevitable and that inequality cannot be fought.
3. The formation of the “birth accident”, concept according to which the possibilities of receiving good education and health protection are rooted in the social stratum, the geographical region and the conditions of the household where it is born.
4. The existence of multiple inequalities, beyond the income gap. It is about inequality in access to land, education, health, credit, advanced technologies, among others.

The existence of multiple inequalities

Kliksberg states that inequality is not only the difference in people’s income, but there are different types of inequalities according to the variable taken. It is in this sense that inequalities appear in access: to land, education, health, credit, advanced technologies, among others. These inequalities are different, but they are not independent and usually reinforce each other.

In a note, the World Economic Forum raises the relevance of taking into account the site where an individual grows as a condition of inequality:

"At a time when inequality in admission is dominating political dialogue, polycy-makers should not overlook the important role of geography to determine the equity of opportunities.".

In this regard, he points out the recent creation of an index of in danger by the Washington DC Economic Innovation Group that incorporates seven metric, thus performing a multidimensional analysis of prosperity in the United States. The variables they consider are those listed below:

• Lack of secondary title
• Household Availability Rate
• Adults without employment
• Poverty rate
• Proportion of average income
• Changes in employment
• Changes in companies

It is interesting to observe how you start thinking in a more comprehensive way in these social issues, interrelated variables and building metrics through the analysis of several causes. Indeed, social problems are not unicause, but are the result of a sum of issues;In fact, rather than a sum, they result from a series of relationships between multiple variables, and this is perfectly applied to inequality.

Conclusions

Inequality represents, without a doubt, a very complex problem that generates impacts on local and national economies;Undoubted. Moreover, inequality has a strong impact on people and their quality of life.  Therefore, it is considered that reference cannot be made to conclusions in this section: there is much more to study and deepen, but, fundamentally, there is much more to do. The role of the State is fundamental, and in this sense it must be understood that the State is made up of governments and also all the inhabitants of a country.

It is essential.