Failure to launch? The role of land inequality in transition delays

•Using new historical data, we explore how land inequality affects long-run growth.•We employ BMA analysis in duration analysis and structural threshold regression.•Land inequality results in delays in extending primary schooling opportunities.

This paper provides empirical support for one theory of transition delays: initial land inequality. Using a new historical dataset for land inequality (Frankema, 2009) we employ duration analysis to investigate whether higher levels of land inequality lead to longer delays in the extension of primary schooling. Our findings suggest that land inequality is a key determinant of delays in schooling.