Compared Inequalities in Latin America

Between August 2023 and July 2024, thanks to the funding from the Support Program for the Advancement of UNAM Academic Staff (PASPA), I had the opportunity to undertake a sabbatical stay at the Observatory of Social Debt of Argentina (ODSA), at the Catholic Argentinian University (UCA) in Buenos Aires. This experience was part of the project Estructura social, regímenes de bienestar y desigualdad en México en perspectiva comparada (Social structure, welfare regimes, and inequality in Mexico from a comparative perspective), an initiative that continued more than a decade of joint work between the University Program for Development Studies at UNAM (PUED), UCA, and the University of Buenos Aires (UBA) to understand how inequalities are shaped in our region, one of the most unequal on the planet.

My stay was a learning and reflective experience. I arrived in Buenos Aires with the purpose of advancing comparative research on economic and social inequalities in Mexico and Argentina, but also with the expectation of strengthening the academic and human bonds that support this type of collaboration.

During my sabbatical year, I worked closely with researchers Santiago Poy (ODSA-UCA and UBA) and Jésica Pla (UBA). Together, we resumed a line of analysis that had been started some time ago under the coordination of Fernando Cortés (PUED) and Agustín Salvia (ODSA-UCA and UBA): how the structural heterogeneity of Latin American economies—the coexistence of highly modern productive sectors with precarious and informal ones—produces persistent inequalities in labor markets and income distribution, mediated by the economic and social policies of each country.

The comparative study between Mexico and Argentina allowed us to observe the structural similarities and differing trajectories. In both countries, inequality remains a central feature, but public policies in certain areas and historical moments have followed different paths. For example, while social welfare systems in Argentina have broader coverage, in Mexico social policy has maintained a more limited and unequal state presence. The contrasts help to reflect on the economic policies and welfare arrangements that have characterized each country and their ability to reduce or reproduce social gaps.

Structural heterogeneity and social inequality
Picture: Consejo Latinoamericano de Ciencias Sociales (CLACSO)

SEEING ARGENTINA’S REALITY UP CLOSE—A SOCIETY THAT COMBINES A STRONG TRADITION OF SOCIAL RIGHTS WITH PERSISTENT ECONOMIC CHALLENGES

The academic work was nourished by regular meetings, review of statistical sources, exchange of bibliography, and theoretical discussion. This process led to a new project titled Desigualdades y arreglos de bienestar en Argentina y México (Inequalities and Welfare Arrangements in Argentina and Mexico), which, with funding from UNAM’s Program to Support Research and Technological Innovation Projects (PAPIIT), we began in January 2025. With it, we aim to deepen the comparison between both countries and, in the future, expand the analysis to other Latin American cases.

The sabbatical was also an opportunity to actively participate in the academic life of Buenos Aires. I attended and helped organize international events on inequality, social policy, and poverty in Latin America, such as the VII International Seminar on Inequality and Social Mobility and the colloquium New Social Challenges and the Restructuring of Public Action, both held at the UBA. In these spaces, in addition to presenting research results, I was able to engage in dialogue with colleagues from different countries, share common concerns, and witness the vitality of Latin American research networks.
A particularly enriching experience was my participation in coordinating the Working Group “Inequalities, Social Structure, and Policies” of the Latin American Council of Social Sciences (CLACSO). Being in Buenos Aires, where CLACSO’s headquarters are located, allowed me to strengthen the coordination of the group and promote joint activities with other research groups working on related topics. Geographical proximity facilitated smoother collaboration and the development of shared research and training projects.

PROMOTING LATIN AMERICAN RESEARCH AND TRAINING NETWORKS BECOMES AN ESSENTIAL TASK

Personally, this stay allowed me to look at the social processes we analyze daily from a different perspective. Seeing Argentina’s reality up close—a society that combines a strong tradition of social rights with persistent economic challenges and that, during my stay, experienced significant political changes with the triumph of Javier Milei’s right-wing government—offered a mirror for reflecting on the Mexican experience. I understood that, beyond the differences in context, our societies face similar dilemmas: how to ensure minimum levels of well-being in contexts of high inequality, how to build sustainable development policies, and how to preserve social cohesion in times of uncertainty.

As a result of the connections established during this stay, I have continued collaborating on various academic initiatives with colleagues in Argentina and other Latin American centers, aimed at strengthening comparative research, teaching, and the dissemination of knowledge about inequality and social policy in the region. These efforts reaffirm the value of networks built through direct exchange and university cooperation.

My experience in Argentina also reaffirmed the value of sabbatical periods as moments of academic renewal. They are times to read, write, think, and, above all, weave connections that enrich knowledge production and strengthen the regional identity of our public universities. In the context of the region, promoting Latin American research and training networks becomes an essential task.

Inequality, ultimately, is not just an object of study: it is a reality that challenges our academic practices, our institutions, and our ways of cooperating. From this commitment, the collaboration between UNAM and Latin American universities will continue to be a fertile space to understand and address, through knowledge, the common challenges of Latin America.

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