Temporary Basic Income (TBI) for nearly three billion of the poorest and most vulnerable people in 132 countries could slow the current surge in COVID-19 cases by enabling and incentivizing people to stay at home during the pandemic, says a new report to be launched by the UNDP, on Thursday. It is an unprecedented measure to help overcome an unprecedented crisis.

The report adds that TBI is feasible and urgent, with the pandemic now spreading at a rate of more than 1.4 million new cases per week, particularly in developing countries where nine out of ten workers make a living in informal sectors and cannot earn money if they are at home.

UNDP has carried out assessments on the socio-economic effects of COVID-19 in more than 60 countries in the past few months and the evidence shows that workers who are not covered by social protection cannot stay at home without an income. The majority of these workers include women and young people, refugees and migrants, and people with disabilities.

The report is being launched this coming Thursday in New York