Quantitative impacts of basic income grant on income distribution in Cote d’Ivoire: Time to change our societies

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Bédia François Aka
Université Alassane Ouattara
Côte d'Ivoire
Vol 25 No 1 (2016), Articles, pages 163-179
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15304/rge.25.1.6481
Submitted: 23-12-2019 Accepted: 23-12-2019
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Abstract

This paper tries to engage the economic and political debate around the proposition of a basic income grant (BIG) in Côte d’Ivoire. We simulate the economic wide and distributional impact of a universal basic income grant (BIG) in Cote d’Ivoire. How the BIG is financed is investigated. We use a microsimulated computable general equilibrium (CGE) model to analyze the effects of a universal basic income grant on the economy and on households. The model is performed using a Côte d’Ivoire’s 2003 social accounting matrix (SAM) based on the 1998 household survey composed of 4,200 households, and 2003 national accounts data. The paper uses a value added tax (VAT) financing approach to provide a reasonable feasible scenario, as we are all consumers. The results suggest that the macroeconomic impacts of the basic income grant are a powerful social protection tool in fighting poverty and inequality towards a welfare state.

Keywords:

Basic income grant, BIG, Fiscal policy, Poverty, Inequality, Welfare, Microsimulated CGE. SAM, Social Account Matrix, Cote d´Ivoire
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