There’s been a long-running debate in international development circles about whether it is better to give people goods or to give cash instead. It is an interesting debate, because it raises many of the same questions that pop up about Universal Basic Income (UBI). Will people waste the money? Will they stop working? Will it actually reduce inequality?

Giving people in Latin America cash aid to stay at home and not migrate to the US is an idea that has been around since a 2018 paper entitled Should I Stay or Should I Go? Do Cash Transfers Affect Migration? It found more research was needed. But it seems to have heated up. Reuters reported April 9 that the US administration was considering a conditional cash transfer program to deter Latin American migrants. And if it does so, you can bet the same questions will pop up.