5.9M less poor Filipinos in 2018: PSA

MANILA — Poverty incidence in the country posted a decline as more Filipinos were lifted out of poverty in 2018, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said Friday.

National Statistician Claire Dennis Mapa said based on the latest data, poverty incidence for 2018 stood at 16.6 percent of the population or 17.6 million Filipinos, which is lower than the 2015 figure of 23.3 percent or 23.5 million Filipinos.

He added that the poverty incidence in the country declined as the number of poor individuals fell in most regions over three years from 2015 to 2018, except in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) where it increased.

Likewise, subsistence incidence or the number of Filipinos unable to meet their basic food needs due to inadequate income stands at 5.2 percent or 5.5 million Filipinos, down from 9.2 percent figure posted in 2015.

The PSA set the poverty threshold or the amount needed to sustain a family of five at P10,727 for 2018, marking an increase of 13.5 percent from the P9,452 poverty threshold set in 2015.

Meanwhile, National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Undersecretary Adoracion Navarro welcomed the release of the statistics, saying that it is indicative of government efforts in spurring economic development and implementing poverty reduction programs.

“We are pleased that the official poverty statistics for the full year 2018 reported by the Philippine Statistics Authority show significant progress, not just in terms of increasing overall income but also reducing inequality,” Navarro said.

“Poverty incidence further dropping to 16.6 percent of the population in 2018 from 23.3 percent in 2015 tells us that we are on track in meeting our targets set under the Philippine Development Plan 2017 to 2022,” she added.

The Philippine Development Plan 2017 to 2022 is a blueprint geared at boosting economic growth and lift more Filipinos out of poverty, wherein one of its targets is to bring down the poverty incidence from 30 percent in 2015 to 20 percent in 2022. ■