ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that engineering can be seen as a lever that amplifies the effect of a given economic investment, yielding human productivity improvements. Engineering reduces the human effort, energy andmaterial resources needed to provide a given level of benefits. Largely seen as the application of scientific and mathematical principles, there is a tacit assumption that a given engineering investment will yield much the same benefits, wherever it is applied. Observations of engineering practice in South Asia and Australia reveal that this assumption is questionable. The social heterogeneity of engineering practice and the political economy in which it is situated influence the performance of engineering investments, causing large differences in benefits.
