"Why do people in the U.S. earn so much more doing the exact same jobs as people in India? One reason is infrastructure: physical infrastructure such as (comparatively) good road and electricity networks, alongside economic infrastructure including a (somewhat) robust banking system. Institutions such as a (passable) set of commercial laws and (not completely capricious) regulatory regimes are another factor. The higher quality of these public goods allows the same amount of effort by the same quality employee to create considerably more value in the U.S. than in India.

"So the overwhelming explanation for who is rich and who is poor on a global scale isn’t about who you are; it’s about where you are."

Charles Kenny , BloombergBusinessWeek, May 29, 2012