ABSTRACT
High-value resources such as oil and minerals are often unequally distributed within countries. When the distribution happens to coincide with ethnic, religious, or other divisions between groups, real or perceived inequality—known as horizontal inequality—may result, creating potential grounds for grievances. In Niger, for example, mineral revenues are siphoned to the capital, and little is invested in the region from which the revenues originate. This practice has created grievances among the Tuareg, the nomadic people whose ancestral lands encompass the mining areas. In other cases, the “aggrieved” parties are privileged groups. For example, Santa Cruz Department—one of the wealthiest states in Bolivia—has sought greater autonomy, out of a growing reluctance to share gas revenues with the poorer states. Unsurprisingly, many resource-rich countries are plagued by secessionist movements pursuing a radical approach to decreasing (or increasing) horizontal inequality.
