It was part of common wisdom that in the early stages of development inequality would rise, but it would, eventually, decline. As time passed and growth persisted inequality has, however, continued to grow, casting doubt on the received wisdom.

Joseph E. Stiglitz is University Professor at Columbia University, USA, and the winner of the 2001 Nobel Prize for Economics. He served on President Clinton's economic team as a member and then as Chairman of the U.S. Council of Economic Advisors in the mid-1990s. He then joined the World Bank as Chief Economist and Senior Vice President.Kaushik Basu is the Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of the World Bank. He is currently on leave from Cornell University, USA, where he is Professor of Economics and the C. Marks Professor of International Studies. Previously he served as Chief Economic Adviser to the Government of India.