Poverty and Inequality Among Ethnic Groups in Chile

Despite two decades of rapid growth, indigenous Chileans are disproportionately poor. However, income data obtained from household surveys that are not representative by ethnicity yield imprecise estimates of poverty and inequality for these groups. This paper therefore estimates poverty and inequality using poverty mapping methods. In contrast to previous studies, however, we use ethnicity rather than geography as a basis for disaggregation. We find that indigenous Chileans are significantly poorer than non-indigenous people, but that inequality rates are also lower for indigenous groups. These reliable estimates of poverty and inequality may augment the antipoverty targeting criteria used in Chile, helping policy-makers to better identify poor households.