Finance, growth and social fairness: Evidence for Latin America and Bolivia

This PhD thesis explores the role of finance in promoting economic growth and social fairness. Our case studies concentrate on Latin America and the Caribbean, and on Bolivia, a developing region and a country for which the relationship between finance, growth, and social fairness turns out to be particularly important. Bolivia is considered as one of the poorest and most unequal countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. Poverty and inequality are not only deeply rooted in the country, but they are also among the most distinctive features of the region. In general, economic growth in Latin American countries has not met expectations, regardless of significant institutional reforms and an inherent potential to fare better. Consequently, the identification of factors that would promote economic growth and social fairness in Bolivia and the region becomes transcendental and necessary. At the same time, the study seeks to contribute to the scarce regional and single country-level research in this field. To pursue this goal, theoretical and empirical literature has been reviewed and original empirical evidence prepared. Moreover, the goal of this research is to conduct an integral investigation that does not rely only on macroeconomic evidence (at the regional and single country level) but also uses microeconomic evidence regarding the role of value chain financial mechanisms in a value chain case study. Throughout the thesis, different dimensions of finance such as financial depth, access to finance, and institutional diversification have been taken into account. Several of these aspects of finance have recently been studied in the empirical literature. Additionally, regarding the limited access to finance for certain agents in Bolivia – in particular, small-sized firms and rural and poor households – value chain finance has been considered as an important alternative for making financial services accessible. The results of this dissertation have implications for the design of financial and social policies for the Latin American and Caribbean region and for Bolivia