What the Poor Need

Just give money to the poor, says a new book by the same name. In it, three British professors say direct cash payments to the developing world’s poor will help economies to grow. “Just Give Money argues that cash transfers can solve three problems because they enable families to eat better, send their children to school and put a little money into their farms and small businesses. The programs work best, the authors say, if they are offered broadly to the poor and not exclusively to the most destitute. ‘The key is to trust poor people and directly give them cash — not vouchers or projects or temporary welfare, but money they can invest and use and be sure of,’ the authors say.”