🔍 Read the full analysis: The Marshall Islands Pays Every Citizen A Basic Income. One Year In, What The First Nationwide UBI Can And Can’t Tell Us on ThorstenMeyerAI.com
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TL;DR
The Marshall Islands completed the first year of Enra, its quarterly payment program for resident citizens, with a final August 2026 payment of $215.85 to 40,714 people. The government has budgeted $32.5 million for year two, but no published evaluation yet shows how the payments have affected recipients. Funding comes from a trust fund established under the country’s Compact of Free Association with the United States.
The Marshall Islands completed the first year of its quarterly Enra payments in August 2026, with a final distribution of $215.85 to 40,714 people, according to the Social Security Administration official quoted by the Marshall Islands Journal. Parliament has since approved $32.5 million for the program’s second year, but a published evaluation of its effects is not yet available.
Enra, officially called the Individual Support Distribution, pays eligible Marshallese citizens who live in the country, including children. There is no means test or work requirement. Citizens living abroad are not eligible. The amount is a share of a fixed annual budget, distributed quarterly, so the payment per person can change as the number of registered recipients changes.
The first payment went out on November 26, 2025, at $201.92 per person to more than 33,000 people. By the second round, registrations had grown above 37,000; the per-person payment fell to about $160 while officials reviewed new applications and residency. A $3.2 million World Bank grant helped raise the third and fourth payments. The August distribution reached 40,714 people, which President Hilda Heine said represented more than 95% of the resident population.
The funding commitment increased for year two. A trust fund committee approved $32.5 million on September 2, and parliament’s September 18 budget included that amount plus a separate $3.2 million Enra Top Up. The prior year’s budget line was $27.6 million. The program is financed through a trust fund created under the Compact of Free Association with the United States, rather than through a new tax, according to the source report.
Infographic 01 · Enra, the first year
Four payments, one fixed pot
How the Marshall Islands paid a basic income to almost every resident citizen between November 2025 and August 2026.
- Nov 2025First payment: $201.92 to more than 33,000 people. MISSA had enrolled 33,119 by 30 Sep 2025.Launch ceremony in Majuro, 26 Nov
- End Mar 2026About $160. Delayed a month to vet new registrations and residence. More than 37,000 registered, same fixed budget.Citizens away more than 3 months are removed from the list, with exceptions
- End May 2026About $200 again, thanks to a $3.2 million World Bank grant ($1.6 million per quarter). More than 41,000 on the eligible list.Pushed by the president over fuel and food prices
- Aug 2026$215.85 to 40,714 people. Fewer paper checks than in earlier rounds.MISSA administrator to the Marshall Islands Journal
Payment per person, year one
US dollars per quarter · March and May rounded as reported
Why the amount moves
- Enra is a fixed annual budget shared equally among everyone eligible that quarter.
- More registrations mean a smaller share unless the budget grows.
- Roughly $780 per person in year one, about 12% of GDP per person (IMF: $6,417, FY2023). My arithmetic.
Sources: Marshall Islands Journal (27 Nov 2025, 26 Feb, 22 May, 6 Aug, 27 Aug 2026) · IMF, 10 Sep 2025. March and May amounts as reported (“about”).
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A Nationwide Payment, Still Unevaluated
Enra offers a rare case of a basic-income-style payment being delivered nationwide rather than to a limited trial group. The first-year figures provide evidence about reach and payment administration: the final round covered 40,714 people, and the government says that was more than 95% of residents. They do not, by themselves, show whether the money reduced hardship, changed employment decisions, affected prices or improved health and education outcomes.
The program is also relevant to debates in richer countries about income security as work changes, including through automation. But the Marshall Islands’ experience cannot be treated as a direct forecast for larger economies. Its population, geography, public finances and funding source are distinct. The reported payments are backed by a country-specific trust fund, and the available material does not establish how an equivalent program would be financed elsewhere.
The International Monetary Fund has raised a fiscal concern. It estimated Enra’s cost at 8.1% of GDP in fiscal 2026 and urged the government to replace it with a targeted program at the first feasible opportunity. That is the IMF’s policy position, not an evaluation of Enra’s effects. The tension is between a broad, simple entitlement and the cost and sustainability of funding it.
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How Enra Reaches Outer Islands
The government’s program combines a universal rule within its eligible group with residency and citizenship limits: payments go to Marshallese citizens living in the country, not citizens abroad. The Social Security Administration maintains the eligible list, while the Ministry of Finance oversees the funding. Payments can be made by check, bank deposit or the Lomalo phone wallet.
The wallet has drawn attention because it distributes a digital token called USDM1. The Ministry of Finance describes it as a US-dollar sovereign bond backed one-to-one by short-dated U.S. Treasuries, and says it is not a cryptocurrency, central bank digital currency or stablecoin. Those are the ministry’s descriptions; the source material does not provide an independent technical assessment. The practical rationale given for digital payment is geographic: bank branches are concentrated on Majuro and Ebeye, while mailed checks can take weeks to reach outer islands.
Enra’s first-year schedule also shows how enrollment affected payment size. The fixed pool was divided among a growing number of recipients, bringing the second payment down to roughly $160. The World Bank grant then helped lift later rounds. The number of people using the phone wallet has not been published, so the available figures do not show how many recipients received money digitally rather than by check or bank deposit.
What the First Year Cannot Show
No published evaluation of Enra’s first-year effects is cited in the source material. It remains unclear how payments changed household income, food security, work, school attendance or health, and whether results differed between atolls or recipient groups. Enrollment and payout counts measure coverage, not those outcomes.
Some operational details are also missing. The government’s reported resident-population coverage is not accompanied here by the full underlying methodology, and the number of recipients using Lomalo has not been released. The material does not establish how much the second-year total will translate into per-person payments, since that will depend on the eligible list and any further funding.
There is also a distinction between the program’s funding source and its long-term affordability. The trust fund was valued at about $1.77 billion at the end of July 2026, according to the source report, but the material does not provide a projection of how long it can support Enra at its current cost or what returns and withdrawals will look like. The IMF’s fiscal estimate and recommendation are not a substitute for such a projection.
Year Two Funding and Evaluation
The immediate next step is the second year of payments under the September budget approval. Future quarterly amounts will depend on the program’s funding, the number of eligible residents and any additional grants or top-ups. The first year showed that a fixed pool can mean smaller payments when enrollment rises, unless more money is added.
Readers will need further official data to assess the program beyond its reach: payment timing, recipient totals by round, funding withdrawals and a published evaluation of household outcomes. The source material does not identify a timetable for such an evaluation or a government response to the IMF’s call for a targeted replacement.
For now, the confirmed record is limited but clear: four payments were made between November 2025 and August 2026, the final round covered 40,714 people, and year-two funding was approved at a higher level than the previous year’s budget line. Whether Enra improves recipients’ lives, and whether its funding can be sustained, remain open questions.
Key Questions
Who qualifies for Enra payments?
Marshallese citizens who live in the Marshall Islands qualify, including children. Citizens living abroad are excluded, according to the source report.
How much did recipients receive in the first year?
The amount changed by quarter. The final August 2026 payment was $215.85 per person; the second payment was about $160 before additional funding helped raise later distributions.
How many people received the final first-year payment?
The August 2026 payment went to 40,714 people, according to the administrator quoted by the Marshall Islands Journal. President Hilda Heine said that was more than 95% of the resident population.
Has Enra’s impact been measured?
The source material says no evaluation has been published. The available figures show payment amounts and coverage, but not effects on poverty, employment, health or education.
How is the program funded?
Enra is funded through a trust fund established under the Compact of Free Association with the United States. Parliament approved $32.5 million for the program’s second year, with a separate $3.2 million top-up in the budget.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
