Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 8
By Fatih Karimov – Trend:
The Gini Coefficient, which is commonly used as a measure of inequality of income or wealth, stood at 0.39 in Iranian last fiscal year (ended March 20, 2016).
The figure indicates an increase by 0.01 compared to the preceding year, according to the latest report from the Iranian Statistical Center.
The Gini coefficient (also known as the Gini index or Gini ratio) is a measure of statistical dispersion intended to represent the income distribution of a nation's residents.
A Gini coefficient of zero expresses perfect equality, where all values are the same (for example, where everyone has the same income), meanwhile the coefficient of 1 (or 100 percent) expresses maximal inequality among values.
In rural areas in Iran, the Gini Coefficient stood at 0.34 in last fiscal year, no change from the preceding year.
Meanwhile in urban areas it increased by 0.01 to 0.37 in last fiscal year, according to the report.
The sixth Five-Year Development Plan of Iran offers reaching a Gini coefficient of 0.34 by March 2021.
The index stood at 43 percent in 1994 according to the World Bank estimates, increased to 44.1 percent in 1998 and decreased to 38.28 percent in 2005.