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Economic Inequality in Bangladesh

Disparity Between Urban and Rural Areas

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The Palgrave Handbook of Global Social Problems

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Abstract

The objective of this chapter is to examine the disparity between urban and rural areas in Bangladesh with regard to factors such as income, spending, possessions, savings, and debt. The research was conducted using a quantitative methodology, which involved gathering data from 544 households across eight divisions in Bangladesh through structured face-to-face interviews. The results showed that although there has been some improvement in recent years, the inequality between urban and rural areas in all five indicators is still significant. In some areas, such as income, assets, and expenditures, urban areas were found to be several times higher than rural areas. This indicates that reducing the income inequality between urban and rural areas in Bangladesh may prove challenging for the government to achieve by 2030, as per the Sustainable Development Goals. The findings of this study could be valuable for policymakers, economists, and development professionals.

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Acknowledgments

Grant for Advanced Research in Education (GARE), Bangladesh Bureau of Educational Information & Statistics (BANBEIS), Ministry of Education, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Family and Child Studies, Research Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates

    M. Rezaul Islam

  2. Institute of Social Welfare and Research, University of Dhaka, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    M. Rezaul Islam

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  1. M. Rezaul Islam
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Correspondence to M. Rezaul Islam .

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© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

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Islam, M.R. (2023). Economic Inequality in Bangladesh. In: The Palgrave Handbook of Global Social Problems. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-68127-2_177-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-68127-2_177-1

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-68127-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-68127-2

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Social SciencesReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

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