Hunger still hits families

3M households lack food once in 3 months – SWS

Some 3 million families, or 15.9 percent of the total in the Philippines, are experiencing hunger at least once in three months, the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey revealed.

The survey conducted on September 24 to 27, 2010 showed that the latest hunger figure is similar to the level of February 2009.

SWS said that over the past six years or since 2004, the percentage of Filipino families experiencing hunger consistently has been at double-digits.
It refers to hunger as being involuntary based on the respondents’ answer that they lack something to eat.

The pollster found out that 48 percent, or an estimated 9 million families, consider themselves as “Mahirap or Poor,” 2 points down from 50 percent in
June, while 39 percent, or an estimated 7.1 million, consider themselves as “Food-Poor,” of which the rates were unchanged from the previous quarter.
Severe Hunger, which occurs “often” or “always” in the last three months, declined from 4.2 percent in June to 3.1 percent in September.

Moderate Hunger, which refers to that being experienced “Only Once” or “A Few Times” in the last three months, also declined from 16.9 percent in

June to 12.9 percent in September. The few who did not state their frequency of hunger were also placed in this category.

Lower overall rates

SWS said that Overall Hunger in the past three months declined by almost 10 points in Mindanao, from 26 percent (estimated 1.1 million families) in June to 16.3 percent (estimated 700,000 families) in September.

In the Visayas, hunger declined by almost six points, from 21 percent (estimated 790,000 families) in June to 15.3 percent (estimated 580,000 families) in September.

In Balance of Luzon (areas outside of Metro Manila), Filipinos experiencing hunger also declined, from 18.3 percent (estimated 1.5 million families) to 14.7 percent (estimated 1.2 million families), and in Metro Manila, from 22.0 percent (estimated 550,000 families) in June to 20.3 percent (estimated 507,000 families) in September.

Self-rated poverty

The SWS survey also showed that Self-Rated Poverty declined in Balance Luzon by four points, from 44 percent in June to 40 percent in September, and in Mindanao by three points, from 56 percent to 53 percent.

In the rural and urban areas, Self-Rated Poverty also went down by three points, from 58 percent to 55 percent, and by one point, from 44 percent to 43 percent, respectively.

But in the Visayas, it rose by three points, from 58 percent to 61 percent, and in Metro Manila by one point, from 48 percent to 49 percent.

The Self-Rated Food Poverty in Mindanao, however, went down by 12 points, from 48 percent in June to 36 percent in September.

In Metro Manila, it rose by six points, from 35 percent to 41 percent, while it increased in the Visayas by five points, from 45 percent to 50 percent, and in Balance Luzon by one point, from 31 percent to 32 percent.

The SWS survey used face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults in Metro Manila, Balance of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

Margins of error are plus or minus 3 percent for national percentages and plus or minus 6 percent for area percentages. –Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz Reporter, Manila Times