The Political Economy of wealth inequality in the global South - A case study of South Africa.

该研究旨在了解全球南方财富不平等的政治经济学。最近的实证研究表明，财富不平等是高度集中的，是其他领域不平等的一个强有力的指标，而且由于它是继承和传递的，进一步加剧了财富差距。由于财富是跨期的，导致财富不平等的过程是通过全球南方特有的社会、历史和政治进程形成的。对财富不平等的分析对于理解经济不平等的持久性至关重要。要做到这一点，我会问：i）精英积累财富的途径是什么？（2）经济政策如何影响不同类型的财富精英？（三）不同类型的财富精英如何影响经济政策的形式？我将建立一个数据库，将精英的特征与他们的资产所有权和相关政策的经济数据联系起来，并将实证分析他们之间的关系和对财富分配的影响。南非是世界上最不平等的社会之一，自民主以来几乎没有变化，因此为研究这些动态提供了一个信息丰富的环境。一国内部的精英阶层（不同派别和种族）以及财富积累的途径有很大的差异，这将有助于分析加强或削弱不平等的资产所有权的因素。

The research aims to understand the political economy of wealth inequality in the global South. Recent empirical work shows that wealth inequality is highly concentrated, isa strong indicator of inequality in other spheres, and since it is inherited and passed on, further exacerbates wealth disparities. As wealth is intertemporal, the processes that lead to wealth inequality are shaped through social, historical and political processes, specific to the global South. An analysis of wealth inequality is central to understanding the persistent nature of economic inequality. To do this, I will ask: i) What are the pathways to accumulate wealth for elites?ii) How have economic policies affected the different 'types' of wealth elites? iii) How have different 'types' of wealth elites influenced the form of economic policies? I will create a database linking the characteristics of elites to economic data on their ownership of assets, and relevant policies, and will empirically analyse their relationships and in fluence on the wealth distribution. South Africa provides an informative setting to study these dynamics, being one of the most unequal societies in the world, with little change since democracy. There is considerable variation within country of elites (different factions and ethnicities), and routes of wealth accumulation, that will allow analysis of factors thatstrengthen or weaken unequal asset ownership.