A tiny Pacific country rolls out universal basic income

Asia | Marshall planThe Marshall Islands uses an American windfall to pay every citizenSomething for everyonePhotograph: Lorenzo Moscia/Archivolatino/Redux/Eyevine Oct 29th 2026|SINGAPORE|4 min readSOON AFTER the second world war, America went looking for a place to test its fast-expanding nuclear arsenal. It settled on the Marshall Islands, then an American-administered collection of atolls scattered across a vast stretch of the Pacific. Over 12 years the Americans carried out 67 nuclear tests. The resulting radiation did lasting damage to the health of the Marshallese, but it also shaped the islands’ relationship with America.This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “Marshall plan”From the October 31st 2026 editionDiscover stories from this section and more in the list of contents⇒Explore the edition