Structural Inequality

Inequality stirs passions across the globe today, figures prominently in political discourse, generates fervid debate and popular protest, and is the theme of widely read scholarly publications. This book contributes to the burgeoning global dialogues and literature on economic inequality in a new way, identifying and addressing what may be called bedrock types of inequality whose origins are rooted in the history and culture of each country. These kinds of inequality strongly influence income distributions by strata, can be resistant to change, and require solutions beyond fiscal tax and expenditure policies. And it places the findings firmly in the realm of the relevant studies on the topics covered. The countries analyzed include South Korea, Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras, Peru, Estonia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nigeria, and Yemen. 

• International economic inequality
• Structural inequality
• Economic development
• Political economy of inequality
• Land reform
• Water rights

In his latest book, Roger Norton brings decades of field experience in a wide range of countries, his intellectual rigour, sensitivity to local conditions, ability to correctly diagnose constraints, as well as his jargon-free writing style, to bear on some of the key theoretical and operational assumptions in extant approaches to tackling structural inequalities. The result is a unique piece of scholarship which will fundamentally shift the debates on this critical issue onto new and more productive terrain. It is long overdue, and will undoubtedly be warmly and gratefully received by academics, development practitioners, governments and international development agencies.

--Mark Simpson, Senior Research Fellow, School of Advanced Study, University of London, UK

Dr. Norton is a well-known and respected agricultural economist with a long history of working in developing countries around the world and writing outstanding scholarly publications for professionals.  In this book, he brings his analytical expertise to bear on the issues of economic development, poverty, and inequality, but he also lets us see his deep humanitarian side in the vignettes he presents.  He shows us that social, cultural, and historical environments contribute significantly to the success or failure of economists’ more traditional prescriptions for economic development – property rights, markets, production enhancement, and transparency – and he demonstrates that macro-economic policies can have a powerful effect on the implementation of these micro-economic recommendations.  This book is both a guide for professionals in the development world and a glimpse into the human experiences of the author and those affected by development policies.

--John Keith, Professor Emeritus of Applied Economics, Utah State University, USA

Structural Inequality is a mesmerizing essay built from testimonies of ordinary people under extraordinary circumstances on their experiences of reality. It dwells into development theory tools and policies to explain the paths into and out of long-time inequality within different contexts and cultures. Norton´s lifelong work can be clearly seen through this critical reflection on development that poses hopeful ways forward to revert such inequalities. 

--María Eugenia Ibarrarán, Universidad Iberoamericana Puebla, Mexico 

 Many years ago, when I was trying to capture country situations in mathematical models, a highly experienced expert in the field of agriculture told me about his secrets in country analysis: “I go, I see, and then I know.” With his book about “Structural Inequality - Origins and Quests for Solutions in Old Worlds and New,” Roger Norton follows this approach and takes the reader with him as an expert with all his knowledge acquired through lifelong experiences in country work to “see,” to “understand” and to “know” how problems could be dealt with. It is motivating reading as the author lets the reader directly participate in on-site occurrences, experiences and events, providing a realistic “seeing,” and in guiding the reader towards conclusions in support to reach the status of “knowing.” I highly recommend this book as it stands out in its approach of highlighting the background and developments in inequality and discussing opportunities for reducing the problem in different countries in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Latin America.

--Prof. Dr. Gerhard Schiefer, University of Bonn, Germany

• Texas A&M University, College Station, USA

  Roger D. Norton

Roger D. Norton currently holds a joint appointment in Texas A&M University’s (USA) Agricultural Economics Department as a Research Professor and the University’s Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture and Development. At the Borlaug Institute he is Director for the Center for Coffee Research and Education and concurrently Director for Latin America and the Caribbean. As principal investigator in the Institute he has led three coffee development projects in Central America, including one that is current, and two projects for other products, one in the Dominican Republic and the other for twelve countries worldwide. Professor Norton earned a Ph.D. in Economics at Johns Hopkins University

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