In-Depth Analysis of Rising Household Indebtedness in an Upper Middle-Income Economy

This book is based on a study of household indebtedness in an upper-middle income economy known as Mauritius, and authored by a vibrant team of researchers from the University of Mauritius. The novelty of this publication is that it fills the gap with respect to the paucity of microeconomic studies pertaining to and relevant for developing countries. At the local and regional level, there is no consolidated work that studies household indebtedness with so much rigour and with such deep-rooted analysis. All in all, this publication uses different data sources and a mixed methodology approach to investigate the factors related to household indebtedness. The main advantage of this publication is that it is based on a comprehensive survey of indebted households in Mauritius. While the survey questionnaire tracks micro-socioeconomic characteristics of households, the empirical analysis is highly scientific and uses the latest statistical and econometric tools, techniques and softwares. It has a good review of literature backed by sound macroeconomic analysis and puts into practice the state of the art of econometric analysis. The discussions are clear and provide insights into expenditure patterns, financial constraints and vulnerability of households both within and among different income categories. The findings uncover specific traits of the typical Mauritian household debtor. The findings in this book are also compared with studies based on other developed and developing countries. Moreover, the book probes deeper into cases of over-indebtedness and the different reasons that could explain various financial commitments of a typical household debtor. Policy recommendations are provided to open the outreach to policy makers and researchers. Lastly, the book is also useful to the academic community and students in terms of its academic endeavors and achievements.