Editing Latin America (section)

==Inequality==
{{Main|Wealth inequality in Latin America}}
[[File:Favela Jaqueline (Vila Sônia) 02.jpg|thumb|Slums on the outskirts of a wealthy urban area in [[São Paulo]], Brazil.]]
[[Wealth inequality]] in Latin America and the [[Caribbean]] remains a serious issue despite strong economic growth and improved social indicators. A report released in 2013 by the [[United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs|UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs]] entitled ''Inequality Matters: Report of the World Social Situation'', observed that: 'Declines in the wage share have been attributed to the impact of labour-saving technological change and to a general weakening of labour market regulations and institutions.'<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0023/002325/232555e.pdf|title=Rethinking Education: Towards a global common good?|publisher=UNESCO|year=2015|isbn=978-92-3-100088-1|pages=24, Box 1|access-date=March 15, 2017|archive-date=November 13, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181113020635/http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0023/002325/232555e.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Such declines are likely to disproportionately affect individuals in the middle and bottom of the [[income distribution]], as they rely mostly on wages for income. In addition, the report noted that 'highly-unequal land distribution has created social and political tensions and is a source of [[economic efficiency|economic inefficiency]], as small landholders frequently lack access to credit and other resources to increase [[productivity]], while big owners may not have had enough incentive to do so.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/publications/world-social-situation-2013.html|title=Report on World Social Situation 2013: Inequality Matters.|publisher=United Nations|year=2013|isbn=978-92-1-130322-3|access-date=June 28, 2017|archive-date=May 25, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170525113848/http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/publications/world-social-situation-2013.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

According to the United Nations [[ECLAC]], Latin America is the most unequal region in the world.<ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.cepal.org/cgi-bin/getProd.asp?xml=/publicaciones/xml/7/42797/P42797.xml&xsl=/dds/tpl/p9f.xsl&base=/ddpe/tpl-i/top-bottom.xslt|title=Protección social inclusiva en América Latina. Una mirada integral, un enfoque de derechos|trans-title=Inclusive social protection in Latin America. An integral look, a focus on rights|publisher=United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (UNECLAC)|isbn=9789210545556|date=March 2011|access-date=August 9, 2012|archive-date=February 1, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201202652/http://www.cepal.org/cgi-bin/getProd.asp?xml=/publicaciones/xml/7/42797/P42797.xml&xsl=/dds/tpl/p9f.xsl&base=/ddpe/tpl-i/top-bottom.xslt|url-status=dead}}</ref> Inequality in Latin America has deep historical roots in the [[Casta|Latin European racially based Casta system]]<ref>{{cite book|author=Nutini, Hugo|first2=Barry|last2=Isaac|title=Social Stratification in central Mexico 1500–2000|year=2009|page=55|publisher=University of Texas Press|quote=There are basically four operational categories that may be termed ethnic or even racial in Mexico today: (1) güero or blanco (white), denoting European and Near East extraction; (2) criollo (creole), meaning light mestizo in this context but actually of varying complexion; (3) mestizo, an imprecise category that includes many phenotypic variations; and (4) indio, also an imprecise category. These are nominal categories, and neither güero/blanco nor criollo is a widely used term (see Nutini 1997: 230). Nevertheless, there is a popular consensus in Mexico today that these four categories represent major sectors of the nation and that they can be arranged into a rough hierarchy: whites and creoles at the top, a vast population of mestizos in the middle, and Indians (perceived as both a racial and an ethnic component) at the bottom.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Seed|first=Patricia|author-link=Patricia Seed|title=To Love, Honor, and Obey in Colonial Mexico: conflicts over Marriage Choice, 1574–1821|publisher=Stanford University|year=1988|location=Stanford|pages=21–23|isbn=0-8047-2159-9}}</ref> instituted in Latin America during colonial times that has been difficult to eradicate because of the differences between initial endowments and opportunities among social groups have constrained the poorest's [[social mobility]], thus causing poverty to transmit from generation to generation, and become a vicious cycle. Inequality has been reproduced and transmitted through generations because Latin American political systems allow a differentiated access on the influence that social groups have in the decision-making process, and it responds in different ways to the least favored groups that have less political representation and capacity of pressure.<ref>Francisco H. Ferreira et al. Inequality in Latin America: Breaking with History?, The World Bank, Washington, D.C., 2004</ref> Recent [[economic liberalisation]] also plays a role as not everyone is [[Equity (economics)|equally capable]] of taking advantage of its benefits.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/details.asp?id=1011&title=untangling-links-trade-poverty-gender|title=Untangling links between trade, poverty and gender|work=ODI Briefing Papers 38, March 2008|publisher=Overseas Development Institute (ODI)|first1=Nicola|last1=Jones|first2=Hayley|last2=Baker|access-date=April 15, 2011|archive-date=July 19, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090719000422/http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/details.asp?id=1011&title=untangling-links-trade-poverty-gender|url-status=dead}}</ref> Differences in opportunities and endowments tend to be based on [[Racism|race]], ethnicity, rurality, and [[Gender inequality|gender]]. Because inequality in gender and location are near-universal, race and ethnicity play a larger, more integral role in discriminatory practices in Latin America. The differences have a strong impact on the distribution of income, capital and political standing.

One indicator of inequality is access to and quality of education. During the first phase of [[globalization]] in Latin America, educational inequality was on the rise, peaking around the end of the 19th century. In comparison with other [[Developing country|developing regions]], Latin America then had the highest level of [[educational inequality]], which is certainly a contributing factor for its current general high inequality. During the 20th century, however, educational inequality started decreasing.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Baten|first1=Jörg|last2=Mumme|first2=Christina|title=Globalization and educational inequality during the 18th to 20th centuries: Latin America in global comparison|journal=Journal of Iberian and Latin American Economic History|year=2010|volume=28|issue=2|pages=279–305|doi=10.1017/S021261091000008X|hdl=10016/21558|s2cid=51961447|hdl-access=free}}</ref>

=== Standard of living ===
Latin America has the highest levels of [[income inequality]] in the world.<ref>{{cite book|author=Baten, Jörg|title=A History of the Global Economy. From 1500 to the Present.|date=2016|publisher=Cambridge University Press|page=148f|isbn=9781107507180}}</ref> The following table lists all the countries in Latin America indicating a valuation of the country's [[Human Development Index]], GDP at purchasing power parity per capita, measurement of inequality through the [[Gini index]], measurement of poverty through the [[Human Poverty Index]], a measure of extreme poverty based on people living on less than 1.25 dollars a day, [[life expectancy]], murder rates and a measurement of safety through the [[Global Peace Index]]. Green cells indicate the best performance in each category, and red the lowest.

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align: right"
|- style="background:#ececec;"
|+'''Social and economic indicators for Latin American countries'''
! Country
! [[HDI]] <br /> <small>(2019)</small><ref>{{cite journal|url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/data|title=UNDP HDI 2020|journal=UNDP|access-date=December 23, 2020|last1=Nations|first1=United|archive-date=November 2, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101102154237/http://hdr.undp.org/en/data|url-status=live}}</ref>
! GDP (PPP) <br /><small>per capita in US$</small><br /><small>(2015)</small><ref>{{cite web|url=http://knoema.com/sijweyg/gdp-per-capita-ranking-2015-data-and-charts|title=GDP per Capita Ranking 2015 – Data and Charts|work=Knoema|access-date=May 13, 2016|archive-date=May 6, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160506215827/http://knoema.com/sijweyg/gdp-per-capita-ranking-2015-data-and-charts|url-status=live}}</ref>
! Real GDP <br /> growth % <br /><small>(2015)</small>
! Income <br /> inequality <br /> <small>Gini</small> <br /> <small>(2015)</small><ref>{{cite web|url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2011_EN_Table3.pdf|title=Human Development Report 2011|work=Table 3: Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index|publisher=United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)|access-date=August 8, 2012|archive-date=May 15, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120515163938/http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2011_EN_Table3.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>
! Extreme <br /> poverty % <br /> <small><1.25 US$</small> <br /> <small>(2011)</small><ref>{{cite web|url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2011_EN_Table5.pdf|title=Human Development Report 2011|work=Table 5: Multidimensional Poverty Index|publisher=United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)|access-date=August 8, 2012|archive-date=September 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120911013222/http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2011_EN_Table5.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>
! Youth literacy %<br /> <small>(2015)</small><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/Documents/literacy-statistics-trends-1985-2015.pdf|title=ADULT AND YOUTH LITERACY: National, regional and global trends, 1985-2015|access-date=January 2, 2016|archive-date=August 2, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160802154845/http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/Documents/literacy-statistics-trends-1985-2015.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>
! Life <br /> expectancy <br /> <small>(2016)</small><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.geoba.se/population.php?pc=world&type=15|title=Geoba.se: Gazetteer – The World – Life Expectancy – Top 100+ By Country (2016)|access-date=May 13, 2016|archive-date=November 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161120052840/http://www.geoba.se/population.php?pc=world&type=15|url-status=live}}</ref>
! Murder <br /> <small>rate per <br /> 100,000</small> <br /> <small>(2014)</small><ref>{{cite web|url=http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/VC.IHR.PSRC.P5?locations=ZJ&year_high_desc=false|title=Homicide Statistics 2014|work=Murder rate per 100,000 inhabitants|publisher=United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)|access-date=February 2, 2017|archive-date=February 2, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202145918/http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/VC.IHR.PSRC.P5?locations=ZJ&year_high_desc=false|url-status=live}}</ref>
! Peace <br /> <small>GPI</small> <br /> <small>(2016)</small><ref name=vohgpi>{{cite web|url=http://visionofhumanity.org/indexes/global-peace-index/|title=Global Rankings|work=Vision of Humanity|date=July 24, 2020|publisher=Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP)|access-date=February 26, 2019|archive-date=June 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190619080402/http://visionofhumanity.org/indexes/global-peace-index/|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Argentina}}
| 0.845 (<span style="color:#090;">'''VH'''</span>)
| 20,170
| 2.6
| 43.6
| 0.9
| 99.2
| 78
| 6
| 1.957
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Bolivia}}
| 0.718 (<span style="color:#0c0;">'''H'''</span>)
| 6,421
| 4.1
| 46.6
| 14.0
| 99.4
| 70
| 12 <sup>(2012)</sup>
| 2.038
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Brazil}}
| 0.765 (<span style="color:#0c0;">'''H'''</span>)
| 15,690
| −3.0
| 52.7
| 0.9
| 97.5
| 70
| 29
| 2.176
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Chile}}
| 0.851 (<span style="color:#090;">'''VH'''</span>)
| 25,564
| 2.3
| 50.8
| 0.8
| 98.9
| 79
| 4
| 1.635<ref name=vohgpi/>
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Colombia}}
| 0.767 (<span style="color:#0c0;">'''H'''</span>)
| 13,794
| 2.5
| 52.2<ref name="socio-economic policies">{{cite web|url=http://www.dane.gov.co/files/investigaciones/condiciones_vida/pobreza/bol_pobreza_15_.pdf|title=socio-economic policies|publisher=dane.gov.co|access-date=March 2, 2016|archive-date=March 6, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306045647/http://www.dane.gov.co/files/investigaciones/condiciones_vida/pobreza/bol_pobreza_15_.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
| 8.2
| 98.2
| 76
| 28
| 2.764
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Costa Rica}}
| 0.810 (<span style="color:#090;">'''VH'''</span>)
| 15,318
| 3.0
| 48.6
| 0.7
| 98.3
| 79
| 10
| 1.699
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Cuba}}
| 0.783 (<span style="color:#0c0;">'''H'''</span>)
| {{n/a}}
| {{n/a}}
| {{n/a}}
| {{n/a}}
| 100.0
| 79
| 
| 2.057
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Dominican Republic}}
| 0.756 (<span style="color:#0c0;">'''H'''</span>)
| 15,777
| 5.5
| 45.7
| 4.3
| 97.0
| 78
| 17
| 2.143
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Ecuador}}
| 0.759 (<span style="color:#0c0;">'''H'''</span>)
| 11,168
| −0.6
| 46.6
| 5.1
| 98.7
| 77
| 8
| 2.020
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|El Salvador}}
| 0.673 (<span style="color:#fc0;">'''M'''</span>)
| 8,293
| 2.3
| 41.8
| 15.1
| 96.0
| 75
| 64
| 2.237
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Guatemala}}
| 0.663 (<span style="color:#fc0;">'''M'''</span>)
| 7,721
| 3.8
| 52.4
| 16.9
| 87.4
| 72
| 31
| 2.270
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Honduras}}
| 0.634 (<span style="color:#fc0;">'''M'''</span>)
| 4,861 
| 3.5
| 57.4
| 23.3
| 95.9
| 71
| 75
| 2.237
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Mexico}}
| 0.779 (<span style="color:#0c0;">'''H'''</span>)
| 18,335
| 2.3
| 48.1
| 8.4
| 98.5
| 77
| 16
| 2.557
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Nicaragua}}
| 0.660 (<span style="color:#fc0;">'''M'''</span>)
| 4,972
| 4.0
| 45.7
| 15.8
| 87.0
| 73
| 8 <sup>(2019)</sup><ref name="Statistic Yearbook National Police 2020">{{cite web|url=https://www.policia.gob.ni/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Polic%C3%ADa-Nacional-ANUARIO-2019-para-web.pdf|title=Statistic yearbook|publisher=policica.gob.ni|access-date=January 22, 2021|archive-date=January 28, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128070346/https://www.policia.gob.ni/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Polic%C3%ADa-Nacional-ANUARIO-2019-para-web.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
| 1.975
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Panama}}
| 0.815 (<span style="color:#090;">'''VH'''</span>)
| 20,512
| 6.0
| 51.9
| 9.5
| 97.6
| 79
| 18 <sup>(2012)</sup>
| 1.837
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Paraguay}}
| 0.728 (<span style="color:#0c0;">'''H'''</span>)
| 8,671
| 3.0
| 48.0
| 5.1
| 98.6
| 77
| 9
| 2.037
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Peru}}
| 0.777 (<span style="color:#0c0;">'''H'''</span>)
| 12,077
| 2.4
| 45.3
| 5.9
| 97.4
| 74
| 7
| 2.057
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Uruguay}}
| 0.817 (<span style="color:#090;">'''VH'''</span>)
| 21,719
| 2.5
| 41.3
| 0.0
| 98.8
| 77
| 8
| 1.726
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| {{flag|Venezuela}}
| 0.711 (<span style="color:#0c0;">'''H'''</span>)
| 15,892
| −10.0
| 44.8
| 3.5
| 98.5
| 75
| 62
| 2.651
|}