inclusive growth

Syllable breakdown

Dictionary meaning

an economic development concept and policy objective that combines the promotion of aggregate economic growth with deliberate attention to the distributional dimensions of that growth, ensuring that its benefits are broadly shared across income groups, regions, genders, and social categories rather than concentrated among elites; inclusive growth emerged as a distinct concept in development discourse in the 2000s in response to evidence that high rates of economic growth in many developing countries had been accompanied by rising inequality, raising questions about whether growth measured at the aggregate level was translating into improvements in the lives of the poorest; the OECD, World Bank, and Asian Development Bank have all developed frameworks for inclusive growth that incorporate measures of distributional outcomes alongside GDP growth; the concept implies both economic efficiency — growth that mobilises the productive potential of all citizens — and social equity — growth that creates opportunities and reduces barriers for marginalised groups