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The deforestation-income relationship: evidence of deforestation convergence across developing countries

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 November 2020

Boka Stéphane Kévin Assa Open the ORCID record for Boka Stéphane Kévin Assa [Opens in a new window]
Boka Stéphane Kévin Assa*
Affiliation:
Economic Policy Analysis Unit of CIRES (CAPEC), University Felix Houphouet Boigny, Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire
*
Corresponding author. E-mail: stephaneassaboka@gmail.com
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Abstract

The importance of forest conservation in the fight against emissions from deforestation and forest degradation has led to reexamination of the deforestation and economic development relationship. For this purpose, we use the recent method of long-term growth rate developed by Stern et al. (2017) on 85 tropical developing countries over the period 1990–2010. Results show that the EKC is not significant. However, we find a beta convergence across developing countries in terms of deforestation per capita. In other words, these countries converge in terms of policies that prevent deforestation and forest degradation. This implies that, just as with growth effects, beta convergence effects are also important in explaining changes in forest cover in tropical developing countries. The convergence effect in forest cover change may be consistent with the forest transition hypothesis.

Keywords

convergencedeforestationEnvironmental Kuznets curveincomelong-run growth rate

JEL classification

Q23: Forestry Q56: Environment and Development • Environment and Trade • Sustainability • Environmental Accounts and Accounting • Environmental Equity • Population Growth O44: Environment and Growth
Type
Research Article
Information
Environment and Development Economics , Volume 26 , Issue 2 , April 2021 , pp. 131 - 150
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press

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