Universal basic income in pandemic times: subsidies for the debate

Abstract

This article brings out the discussion about the Universal Basic Income (UBI), focusing on several aspects that serve to support the debate about its meaning, and its adoption as an income transfer policy. It has followed the evolution of humanity since the Middle Ages. Its discussion it was never abandoned, having increased in 2020, in the economic field, as a Pandora's Box for all ills due to the impacts of the pandemic brought by Covid 19. The RBU has been approached throughout history, its definition and its main characteristics are presented, discussing the favorable and unfavorable arguments for its adoption. It brings a retrospective of its implantation in the international scenario, the opinion of a group of renowned international economists, as well as of the main multilateral institutions engaged in the subject (World Bank, FMI, OCDE and OIT). Finally, it contemplates its discussion in the Brazilian case, bringing the opinion of national economists, politicians and the Federal Government.