Since the early 80s the global number of people who live in poverty is declining
But up to this day over 595 million people can't cover their basic costs of living
and provide financial security for themselves
What if everyone's income was taken care of by government support
An income as an human right
Hooray for the universal basic income
Unlike social assistant benefits the UVI is an unconditional income
that's sufficient to meet every person's basic needs
A fixed amount regardless of a person's gender, family composition, employment status or income
Since the 60s there has been a number of pilots and experiments
Derived from this research some results are very clear
Homelessness and hunger can be eliminated and people's self-esteem will rise
Nobody is dependent on another person anymore
and parents can focus primarily on raising their children
People will start working fewer hours which means more room available on the labour market
People will become higher educated
Prosperity in developing countries will rise and economic migration will decrease
But the latter only applies when the UBI is implemented on a global scale
Otherwise countries that are able to provide a UBI will become more attractive for economic migration
So how realistic is a UBI?
Well, some governments just can't afford a basic income without the support of wealthier countries
Other governments might need to cut on other expenses like health care, education or defense
or raise taxes since the UBI is slightly more expensive than systems currently used
Within UBI countries the role of the government will increase
and their citizens will become more dependent on the state
As for now, pilots and experiments are conducted in several countries
only on a national or local level, focused on specific groups
Will we be able to work together as global citizens in order to realize a global universal basic income?
That's the challenge that lies ahead of us
Did you learn anything?
For more AnyStories subscribe to our YouTube channel