by Ian Nicolas P. Cigaral, Businessworld, May 12, 2017
POOR Filipino families lack about half of the amount they need monthly to get out of poverty, according to a new Social Weather Stations (SWS) report.
A March 25-28 poll conducted via face-to-face interviews with 1,200 adults nationwide found the national median Self-Rated Poverty Gap (SRPG) — which SWS defines as amount that the poorer half of the poor lack in order not to consider themselves as such — at P5,000.
This is half their stated Self-Rated Poverty Threshold (SRPT) of P10,000 — which is the minimum monthly budget that poor households need in order not to consider themselves such. “This has been the case since September 2016,” SWS said.
The same survey also showed that national median Self-Rated Food Poverty Gap (SRFPG), or the amount the poorer half of the food-poor lack in order not to consider their food as such, is P2,000.
The latest median SRFPG is a little less than half of their stated Self-Rated Food Poverty Threshold (SRFPT) of P5,000 — which is the minimum monthly food budget that poor families need in order not to consider their food as poor.
“This has been the case since December 2016,” the report said.
“In the past, the median SRPG has generally been half the amount of the median SRPT, and the median SRFPG has generally been half the amount of the median SRFPT.”
“This means that the poorer half of the poor lack half the amount of money they need to survive.”
Metro Manila’s median SRPT rose to P20,000 this quarter from P18,000 in December — the highest median SRPT recorded in the nation’s capital so far. Its median SRPG similarly edged up to P10,000 from P8,000, also a record.
While Mindanao has maintained its P10,000 median SRPT since April 2016 — the highest recorded on the island, its median SRPG rose to P5,000 from P4,000 — the biggest since SWS began tracking this indicator on the island in November 2010.
In Balance Luzon, the median SRPT stayed at P10,000 and median SRPG likewise steadied at P5,000 from December 2016.
The Visayas has kept median SRPT at P10,000 since December 2014, which had a record-high P12,000, while median SRPG has stayed P5,000 since June 2016.
In terms of SRFPT, the median fell to P9,000 from P10,000 in Metro Manila, which nevertheless saw median SRFPG rise to P5,000 from P4,000 — the highest for the capital since SWS started gauging it in November 2010.
Balance Luzon’s median SRFPT stayed at P5,000 from December 2016, though its median SRFPG increased to P2,500 from P2,000.
In the Visayas, the median SRFPT has remained at P5,000 since June 2015, while median SRFPG has stayed at P2,000 since December 2015.
Mindanao’s median SRFPT rose to a record P5,000 from P4,000, while its median SRFPG has stayed P2,000 since December 2015.
Commenting on the survey result, Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto C. Abella said in a mobile phone message that “alleviating poverty to bring comfortable lives is the overarching goal of the Duterte administration.”
“Having said this, the government has initiated some pro-poor and inclusive efforts… This way we hope to bring more food on the poor household families’ table.” —
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