Today, Brazil’s highest court orders the government to set up a basic income scheme for 2022 onward. Early Covid hearings shenanigans could backfire for President Bolsonaro. Health regulators turn down Sputnik V vaccine.
Supreme Court forces government to create basic income
In a 7-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that the government must implement a nationwide basic income program starting in 2022. Justices did not go into many specifics, but established that it must encompass all Brazilians living on less than BRL 178 (USD 33) a month.
Why it matters. The pandemic scrapped advances in food security made over the previous 15 years — 19 million Brazilians experienced hunger at the turn of the year and more than half of the country’s households struggle to put food on the table.
Big impact. In a country as unequal as Brazil, cash-transfer policies can make a big difference. Launched in the 2000s, policies such as the Bolsa Família program made huge strides in wealth distribution, and the 2020 coronavirus emergency aid scheme brought poverty levels to their lowest on record.
- However, when the program ended, poverty levels shot back up — forcing the government to revive the aid scheme, albeit with...