Universal Basic Income in Estonia

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Estonia is a small but developed country, with a population of 1.3 million, located in Northern Europe. Its high-income economy is often referred to as the fastest growing in the EU. In addition to that, Estonian citizens obtain the free education and universal health care. On the international market, the country stands out for its I.T. advancements. In 2005, Estonia became the first state in the world to hold elections over the internet, and in 2014, the first to provide e-residency. In terms of earnings, 29% of Estonian citizens either earn a minimum wage of 584€ (2020) or less than that. Therefore, those citizens do not work for a decent level of life but rather for survival. With all of that being said, there are factors that would support the idea of Universal Basic Income, if it were to be accepted in Estonia. The factors being, poverty and unemployment, and the current COVID-19 pandemic.

The input of Universal Basic Income (UBI) would make a great change in the members of lower class. Nowadays, people earning minimum wage, find themselves in a survival situation for providing food and a place to live for themselves and/or their families. It has a direct effect on their psychological state because such a person always remains under stress. UBI would provide a base for lower-class families. Indeed, they would not only stop worrying about the next day, but it would also provide them with better opportunities for the future. For instance, they could ensure all the vital needs for their children, such as clothes and school supplies by devoting more money to them as well as offering a higher level of education. From a political perspective, people would want to be more involved with their government. A country where the level of life of citizens is high is a blooming country. Thievery in Estonia would decrease as well. The statistics of the Estonian Ministry of Justice show, that in 2017, 1022 cases of crimes were registered by the underage people. The majority of those cases were small thefts, where teenagers were trying to steal to earn some money that the parents could not afford to give to them. UBI would solve this problem because as mentioned previously, parents will be able to invest more in their children. As parents would have more financial resources, they will be able to give their children a prospect for development such as, extracurricular activities and hobbies that would guarantee them a life where they would be able to develop as people rather than involving themselves in criminal activities. It would develop their intelligence, physical health, and soul. UBI would affect the economy as well. The Unconditional Basic Income means that enterprise would be financed by Estonian public sector through citizens. Those enterprises provide goods and services that are essential to a society as people could not live in dignity and participate in the economy without. Those including food production, clothing industry, telecommunication services, services related to housings and transport. Meaning, that instead of going straight to enterprises, taxes and salaries, money in the national economy would beforehand stop in the citizens’ back accounts before continuing to the rest. Once people will be financially stable, they will not be stressed out and will have more interest in different subjects that will, therefore, help the country by decreasing criminal activities and developing people’s interest.

Since January, the pandemic of coronavirus has affected the whole world. Although being a small country, as of today (3.04), there are already 1018 cases of coronavirus in Estonia. During this period, many people have lost their jobs or have seen their salaries decrease. The stress levels of the citizens are very high and with the possibility of losing their jobs and/or money, it adds even more stress up. Many small and medium enterprises have no support from the government, and they have no choice but to struggle alone during the crisis. If UBI policy was to be adopted in Estonia during today’s pandemic, it would have a great effect on the country. With the money provided to people, it could save jobs and once the crisis is over, not search for a new job but continue working. The stress would go down as well because people would know that they have full support from the government, thus contributing positively on their mental health as well. As mentioned previously, education is free in Estonia, including the food. With the closing of the educational institutions, children, whose parents cannot afford nutritious food, lose the benefits of free breakfasts and lunch, given to them 5 times a week. As food provided by the government is not available anymore, families are forced to spend even more money. Universal Basic Income would give those families an opportunity, during the pandemic, to be able to offer all the necessary in those hard times.

Universal Basic Income can be a plausible solution for Estonia. Not only it helps to deal with unemployment and poverty, but it also gives citizens a stable ground to live upon. UBI has many advantages, a few of them being economic growth and general prosperity of a country. Juvenile delinquency would decrease as instead, the youth would get more financial support. During a pandemic, UBI could help to secure people’s welfare and give hope for a brighter future, once the crisis will be over. UBI policies would give different opportunities to Estonians because they would have an extra income to have more freedom from the problems they might face. Considering all of the arguments above, Universal Basic Income would have a positive impact on the Estonian society.

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