Inequality of Economic Opportunity in Turkey

Using information on asset ownership, housing quality, and access to services to construct an indicator of household wealth, the author estimates the share of inequality among prime-age Turkish women that can be attributed to unequal opportunities. Both parametric and non-parametric estimation methods are used, and robustness to some sample redefinitions is verified. The author find that at least one-third (one-fourth) of overall wealth (imputed consumption) inequality in Turkey is associated with morally irrelevant, pre-determined circumstances. The circumstances that account for the largest share of the variance are rural or urban birth area and father's education. Controlling for rural birth, parents' education, language spoken at home, and number of siblings, a three-way regional breakdown of birthplace is not an important predictor of wealth. An opportunity deprivation profile reveals that more than two thirds of the most deprived group in Turkey consists of women born in the rural areas of the Eastern region, from mothers with no formal education.