INTRODUCTION

Isang kahig, isang tuka

Ganyan kaming mga dukha
-- Ka Freddie Aguilar

In the time it takes you to say, 1-one thousand, 2-one thousand, 3-one thousand,
someone somewhere in the world has dropped dead, due to extreme poverty. This translates into
deaths of 30,000 people a day or 10.5 million a year, simply because they are too poor to stay
alive.1
Poverty is no stranger to a third-world country like the Philippines. We see it all around us. From
slum dwellers who live in sub-human conditions, to landless peasants who go on hunger strikes,
to street children who beg for alms millions of Filipinos are stuck in dire poverty.
The thin line
Politicians and policy makers who promise to eradicate extreme poverty must first
determine who the poor are and where they are. To do this, they turn to a measure called
poverty line - first established by the United States Government in 1964, and defined as the
threshold below which families or individuals are considered to be lacking the resources to meet
the basic needs for healthy living; having insufficient income to provide the food, shelter and
clothing needed to preserve health. (Bojicic, 2010).
In 1990, the World Bank through its World Development Report presented a global
poverty line of US$1 a day, which was then used to measure poverty incidence in the world.
Developing countries were quick to react to the generalized poverty line, pointing out that a
dollar in the USA is a long way away from a dollar in a third-world country. As a result, many
were forced to compute their own national poverty lines, and even sub-national/regional ones.
In the Philippines, the government computes the poverty lines (also known as poverty
thresholds) of each of the seventeen regions in our country. According to the National Statistical
Coordination Board, the poverty line may be viewed as the minimum income required to meet
the food requirements and other non-food basic needs.
Two values are necessary when computing for the poverty line of each region: first, the
government computes the cost of a food threshold 2 which is a 1-day menu that satisfies the basic
food requirements of 2,000 calories; and secondly, the proportion of the food expenditures (FE)
1 Note: Jeffrey Sachs in his book, The End of Poverty, states that everyday more than 8,000 children die of
malaria, 5,000 mothers and fathers die of tuberculosis, 7,500 young adults die of AIDS, and thousands more dead of
diarrhea, respiratory infection, and other killer diseases that prey on bodies weakened by chronic hunger. The poor
die in hospital wards that lack drugs, in villages that lack anti-malarial bed nets, in houses that lack safe drinking
water...Most people are unaware of the daily struggles for survival, and of the vast numbers of impoverished people
around the world who lose that struggle.
2 Note: NSCBs FAQs on Official Poverty Statistics of the Philippines (June 2007) explains that the one-day
menus were determined by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) using low-cost, nutritionally adequate
food items satisfying basic food requirements of 2,000 calories, which are 100 percent adequate for the
Recommended Energy and Nutrient Intake (RENI) for energy and protein and 80 percent adequate for the RENI for
vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. These menus were used to estimate the per capita per day food cost. This is
then multiplied by 30.4 (approximate number of days per month) to get the monthly food threshold or by 365 days
(30.4 days/month x 12 months) to get the annual per capita food threshold. (See Annex A)

to total basic expenditures (TBE).3 To get the poverty threshold, divide the first value by the
second value. In other words:
proportionof food expenditures
cost of food t h res h old for a1day ( 2,000 calorie ) menu
poverty line=
basic total expenditures

To explain further, lets say that the government computed the food threshold and pegged the
cost of the menu at P38. This menu should satisfy provide 2,000 calories with 100%
recommended daily allowances for energy and protein and 80% complete for essential vitamins,
minerals and nutrients. This value is divided by the percentage of expenses for basic needs
expenses allocated for food. For example, this proportion is equivalent to 70%, i.e. 70% of their
daily income is allocated for food and only 30% remain for other non-food needs. When we
divide these two values, we get a poverty line thats equivalent to P54.29.

proportion of food expenditures

cost of food t h res h old for a1day ( 2,000 calorie ) menu
P 38
poverty line=
basic total expenditures =
=P54.29

70
Below the belt
Now that we have an idea as to how the poverty line or poverty threshold is computed,
perhaps we can now understand the oft-used phrase below the poverty line. Maybe we can
now comprehend what Republic Act 8425, otherwise known as the Social Reform and Poverty
Act of 1997, means when it says that the poor refers to individuals and families whose income
fall below the poverty threshold as defined by the National Economic and Development
Authority and/or cannot afford in a sustained manner to provide their minimum basic needs of
food, health, education, housing and other essential amenities of life.
With the abovementioned definition, the question at the tip of everybodys tongue is,
How many Filipinos are poor?. In other words, How many Filipinos are living below the
poverty line? In economics, this is described as the poverty incidence, which measures the
proportion of population whose annual per capita income falls below the per annual per capita
poverty threshold to the total number of population.

3 Note: NSCBs FAQs on Official Poverty Statistics of the Philippines (June 2007) explains that
Non-food basic needs include the following: clothing and footwear; fuel, light and water;
housing maintenance and other minor repairs; rental or occupied dwelling units; medical care;
education; transportation and communications; non-durable furnishing; household operations;
and personal care and effects. Hence, to compute for the poverty threshold, the food threshold is
divided by the proportion of the food expenditures (FE) to total basic expenditures (TBE)
derived from the latest FIES using the FE/TBEs of families within the +/- ten percentile of the
food threshold. The resulting estimate is the annual per capita poverty threshold.
3

This paper aims to describe the incidence of poverty in the Philippines over the last ten
years, using statistical data from the National Statistics Coordination Board. In Part 2, the
researchers compare our poverty data with those of our ASEAN neighbours over the same
period, based on data from the World Bank. Finally, this paper will analyze the interdependent
causes of poverty.

Part 1

Poverty in the Philippines

In a country well governed, poverty is something to be ashamed of.
In a country badly governed, wealth is something to be ashamed of.
-- Confucius

It is said that a dollar a day, keeps poverty at bay. This certainly holds true in our country,
according to the 2009 Official Poverty Statistics which estimated the national poverty line to be
at P46.11 per day. This threshold comes from data from the seventeen regions of our country.
Each region has its own poverty threshold primarily because there are differences in the prices of
food and other basic commodities in the different regions. Factors such as cost of living and
income also come into play. Among the regions, Region 94 has the lowest poverty line at P41.51
per day (equivalent to P15,160 in a year), while the National Capital Region has the highest,
which amounts to 54 pesos and 22 centavos for one day or equivalent for one year to 19, 802
pesos. Figure 1a below charts the different regional poverty lines in the Philippines and Figure
1b lists the annual thresholds, while Figure 2 gives us a historical glimpse of poverty lines of the
past.

Regional Poverty Lines (in Pesos Per Day)

National = P46.11 / day
54.22
51.97
48.8748.6648.65
46.9446.6546.1645.36
44.7544.1443.9143.5643.1743.15
41.9141.51

Figure 1a. Regional Poverty Lines 2009 Official Poverty Statistics (National Statistical Coordination Board
(NSCB), 2011)
Figure 1b. Annual Poverty Line for Individuals:

Region
NCR
III
VII
IV-A
I
V
XI
CARAGA
X

Annual Threshold
PHP 19,802
PHP 18,981
PHP 17,848
PHP 17,771
PHP 17,768
PHP 17,146
PHP 17,040
PHP 16,858
PHP 16,568

Region
ARMM
CAR
VI
VIII
IV-B
XII
II
IX

Annual Threshold
PHP 16,344
PHP 16,122
PHP 16,036
PHP 15,910
PHP 15,769
PHP 15,762
PHP 15,306
PHP 15,160

4 See Annex B for more details on the seventeen regions of the Philippines
5

National

PHP 16,841 per year

Chart Title
50
45
40
35
30
Pesos Per Day

25
20
15
10
5
0

Year

1997

2000

2003

2006

2009

Figure 2. National Poverty Line 19972009 from NSCB Official Poverty Statistics

As can be seen in Figure 2, the poverty line has increased steadily over the years, in order to
keep up with inflation. We can also note that poverty surveys are only done every three years
because it takes two years to complete an official poverty report. (Mangahas, 2010) In fact, the
findings of the 2009 poverty survey were only released in February 2011.
So how many are poor?
It was discussed in the introduction that after estimating the poverty line, the next step is
to determine the percentage of the population who earning less than the poverty line, and
therefore, poor. This leads us to what is called poverty incidence.
The 2009 poverty statistics reflect the sad truth that millions of Filipinos are living below
the poverty line. The least poor region is the National Capital Region with 4% poverty incidence.
And the poorest of the poor is CARAGA or Region 13, on the northeastern portion of the island
of Mindanao with provinces: Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, Surigao del Norte, Surigao del
Sur and Dinagat Islands. Its poverty incidence is at 47.8%. The regional data results to a national
poverty incidence of 26.5% amounting to over 23 million Filipinos. This means that one out of
four Filipinos is extremely poor.

Figure 3 charts the poverty incidence in the different regions, while Figure 4 gives us a
historical glimpse of poverty incidences in the past.
Figure 3. Regional Poverty Incidence 2009 Official Poverty Statistics (National Statistical Coordination Board
(NSCB), 2011)

Philippine Poverty Incidence - 2009

50.00%
45.00%
40.00%
35.00%
30.00%
Percent of Population

25.00%
20.00%
15.00%
10.00%
5.00%
0.00%
CARAGA IX

VIII

XII

IV-B

VI

CAR

III

NCR

Figure 4a. Philippine Poverty Incidence, 1997- 2009 (with population equivalents)--- NSCB Official Poverty
Statistics

Poverty Incidence - Philippines

40
35
30
25
Poverty Incidence
(% of Population)

20
15
10
5
0

Year

1997

2000

2003

2006

2009

Family Matters
To paint a more realistic picture of our society, the government has also computed for the
poverty lines of families. This data is of significance because not all individuals who belong to a
family have access to income primarily because they are too young to work or they are
unemployed. Figure 5 below charts the poverty thresholds of Filipino families, as of 2009. In
addition, Figure 6a compares the required income for a family of five to stay out of poverty and
Figure 6b shows the increase in magnitude of poor families over the years. The figures show that
the number of poor families have been increasing over the last ten years.

Fig 5. 2009 Family Poverty Thresholds (from NSCB Official Poverty Statistics 2009)

Fig 6b. Number of Poor Families

(from NSCB Official Poverty Statistics 2009)

Fig 6a. Family of Five Poverty Thresholds

(from NSCB Official Poverty Statistics 2009)

In addition to the official poverty statistics, its worth noting that self-rated poverty is also
high in our country. Based on the Social Weather Stations surveys shown in Figure 4a below,
49% of Filipinos consider their households to be poor or mahirap.

10

Part 2
The Southeast Asian Scene
There's enough on this planet for everyone's needs
but not for everyone's greed.
-- Mohandas Gandhi

11

In the Southeast Asian region, national and regional interests have affected the levels of
cooperation and/or competition among the member countries of the Association of South East
Asian Nations (ASEAN). In the area of poverty alleviation, ASEAN Ministers have held
meetings since 1998 in the area of Rural Development and Poverty Eradication. The cooperation
and consultations between countries in the region have helped ease the social impacts of the
monetary and economic crises. The Ministers also hold discussions with multilateral donor
institutions, namely, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and the United Nations
Development Programme, regarding the possibilities for collaboration in implementing the
ASEAN Action Plan on Social Safety Nets. (ASEAN, 1998)
Various economic development indicators are used to compare and contrast the countries
in the Southeast Asian region. In terms of growth, National Income and Gross Domestic Product
are used. With regard to socio-economic measures, the Human Development Index studies the
rates of literacy, life expectancy, and standard of living. In the area of development, poverty
incidence in each country plays a vital role in painting a picture of economic viability
sustainability. For obvious reasons, foreign investors use these macroeconomic indicators in
deciding on where to invest and base themselves.
Whats up doc?
Poverty is not just a social disease, it is a social disgrace. A high poverty incidence does
not only reflect the lack of money or income for a large portion of the population, it also reflects
a cultural blindness to the injustice that the poor people experience on a daily basis. Carl C
Holmes, in his essay Crime and Poverty pointed out that the poor suffer not just
economically, but they also suffer lack of opportunity, lack of education, lack of health care, and
significantly more violence than others better situated in the community. They suffer higher
disease rates, death rates and imprisonment than their affluent brethren. They are imprisoned at
much higher rates and they are executed for capital crimes more often than any other group. In
fact, they are almost the exclusive recipients of the death penalty." (Holmes, 2002)
In Part 1 of this paper, we looked into the poverty statistics of the Philippines. But the
embarrassment doesnt stop there. If we compare our data with those of our ASEAN neighbors,
we find that we are lagging behind in the fight against poverty. Our country, described as the
Sick Man of Asia has the third highest poverty incidence in the region and in contrast to all the
other countries who have decreased their poverty incidence, the Philippines is the only country in
the region whose poverty incidence has been increasing. 5 Figures 7a and 7b shows the data in
more detail.

5 Poverty incidence data is not available for Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, and Myanmar
12

South East Asia Poverty Incidence

27.6

26.5

3.8

14.5

13.3

8.1

30.1

Figure 7a. Poverty Incidence in the South East Asian countries (from World Bank)

Poverty Incidence Over Time, South East Asian Nations

50

45

40

35

30

Poverty Incidence

25

20

15

10

0
1989

1993

1994

1997

1998

2000

2002

2003

2004

2006

2007

2008

Figure 7b. Poverty Incidence in the South East Asian countries Over Time (from World Bank)

13

2009

2010

Part 3
Causes of Poverty
The test of our progress is not whether we add more
to the abundance of those who have enough;
it is whether we provide enough
for those who have too little."
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt

14

While our ASEAN neighbors are seeing the light at the end of the poverty tunnel, the
Philippines is still in the dark when it comes to poverty reduction. we cant help but feel shame
and outrage about the state of poverty in our country. For a country that prides itself on the
intellectual and human resource capital it provides the world, we are forced to beg the question,
Why are we poor?
To help answer this question, this paper refers to two studies made by the Asian
Development Bank: 1) Poverty in the Philippines: Income, Assets, and Access, published in
2005; and 2) Poverty in the Philippines: Causes, Constraints, and Opportunities published in
2009.
The following six causes of poverty have been identified in the abovementioned studies:
1) Weak economic growth
2) Poor investment climate
3) Unstable inflation rates
4) Uncontrolled population growth
5) Natural disasters and economic crises
6) Income Inequality
Cause # 1 - Weak economic growth
From a macroeconomic standpoint, a laggard economy produces zero to low growth for a
country. The lack of growth also reflects the lack of employment and business opportunities that
could generate incomes for employees and entrepreneurs. Figure 8 below compares our Gross
Domestic
Product
Growth
Rates
with
our
neighbors
since
1960.

Figure 8. Average Gross Domestic Product Growth Rates, 1960-2007 (Asian Development Bank, 2009)

15

It should also be noted that changes in poverty depend not only on the rate of economic
growth but also on the type of growth. According to the 2009 study, recent economic growth
has been conned to a few sectors, such as the export-oriented semiconductor industry,
telecommunications, business process outsourcing, real estate, housing, and retail trade. Most of
these are in the services sectors, which are being supported by remittances from overseas
Filipino workers to their families in the Philippines operating small businesses. This is a major
reason why not enough quality jobs are created and why poverty incidence and inequality have
not improved much in recent years. Sectors that will create more jobs have also not been
performing well: agriculture, manufacturing, and industry.
Cause # 2 - Poor investment climate
Very much related to our economic growth is the volume of investments that are made in
the various sectors, especially in agriculture, manufacturing and industry. During the Ramos
Administration, the country was abuzz with the phrase level
the playing field which helped improve the investment
climate in our economy. But a six-year presidential term was
no match for the century-old monopolistic and oligopolistic
market structures that have plagued our country since the time
of tobacco till todays modern age of telecommunications.
In terms of foreign investment, we are also faced with
cut-throat competition in the South East Asian region from
countries that offer low labor wages and generous incentives.
Our neighbors have also adjusted their ownership regulations
to accommodate foreign interests. As mentioned by Professor
Enrico Mina in our class discussions, companies such as Intel
and Johnson and Johnson have closed their manufacturing
plants in the Philippines and have transferred to our neighbors.
Figure 9 on the right compares our unemployment rates with
the tiger economies in Asia.
Peace and order and the judiciary also serve crucial roles in creating a business climate
conducive to investments, both local and foreign. The poverty in Mindanao has often been
attributed to the armed conflict that has afflicted Southern Philippines for decades. And there was
even a time when a group of bandits in Mindanao called Abu Sayyaf caused much damage to the
image of our country in the eyes of foreign investors. The Abu Sayyaf went on a kidnapping
rampage in the five-star resorts in the Southern Philippines and Malaysia. Tourism and foreign
investments in our country were badly affected, even the stock exchange was hurt. Investors
perceived the government to be weak and inutile in addressing the problem in the South. Another
incident that affected tourism, and the overall image of our country, was the Manila hostage
crisis that was handled poorly by the authorities.

16

Cause # 3 - Unstable inflation rate

Philippines
Inflation
Rates
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005

6.
0
3.
1
3.
1
6.
0
7.
6
6.

In an earlier paper entitled, Philippines-ASEAN Inflation Rates,

the researchers described the inflation rates in the country and in the
region in the last ten years. As mentioned in the paper, The Philippines
experienced single-digit inflation rates in the past decade with the lowest
2.8% in 2007 due to the soaring economic growth, strong
peso and stable prices of commodities. The following year,
however, recorded the highest inflation rate at 9.3% mainly due to the
global financial crisis. Political factors also played a role in the countrys
inflation rate. The decade began in a slump with a rate of 6.0% due to the
political instability brought about by the change in leadership from the
ousted Former President Joseph Estrada and his successor Former
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Year 2001 was a time of sluggish
investment growth, rising unemployment rates, international oil price
increases and weakening of the peso. Slightly stable was years 2002 and
2003 with a rate of 3.1% brought about by a slowdown in food inflation,
subdued demand-pull inflationary pressures, soft-labor market conditions
and the downtrend in international oil prices.

The election in 2004, supply-side shocks including the increase in global oil prices as
well as the spate of typhoons and domestic supply constraints affecting the availability of certain
food products resulted to a rise in the inflation rate to 6.0%. Inflation rose again in 2005 to 7.6%
with the continued increase in consumer prices in food, energy and transportation coupled with
adjustments in minimum wage and the adverse effect of El Nio on agricultural output,
especially on rice and corn production.
Year 2006 was slightly lower at 6.2 due to higher world oil prices, the two-percentage
point increase in the VAT and the removal of certain VAT exemptions. It further decreased to
2.8% in 2007 due to generally stable prices for major food items, favourable supply conditions,
particularly the sustained growth in agriculture and the subsiding base effect of the RVAT on CPI
as well as the firm peso tempering the impact on domestic prices of increasing global commodity
prices including food and oil.
The confluence of global and supply-side factors such as the big surge in the international
prices of oil and food commodities, resulting in higher domestic rice and pump prices of fuel,
likewise affecting wage and price-setting behaviour of businesses and households shot the
inflation rate to its highest level of 9.3% in 2008.
The Philippine economy bounced back to a rate of 3.2% in 2009 due to lower oil and
other commodity prices brought about by subdued demand conditions. A slight increase the
following year to 3.8% was traced to subdued food price increases facilitated by rice imports
countering local production shortfalls caused by bad weather conditions.

17

Cause # 4 - Uncontrolled population growth

In the heated debates about the morality of Representative Edcel Lagmans Reproductive
Health Bill, a simple time-tested and logical fact is ignored: A larger family size is associated
with higher poverty incidence, gap, and severity. A Larger family size has also been associated
with higher vulnerability to poverty. (Asian Development Bank, 2009)
Figure 10 below presents the data on the population growth rates in the region. It is
evident that most, if not all, of our neighboring countries have curbed their population growth.

Cause # 5 - Natural disasters and Man-made Crises

The Global Climate Risk Index (CRI) measured by Germanwatch analyzes to what extent
countries have been affected by the impacts of weatherrelated loss events (storms, floods, heat
waves etc.). In 2009, the Philippines placed third in the world due to the storms, floods, and
other weather-related disasters that affected our country. (Harmeling, 2010) It can be recalled
that it was in 2009 when Tropical Depression Ketsana, more popularly known as
Supertyphoon Ondoy wreaked havoc in our country, along with Pepeng and Ramil.
In addition, in the Long-Term Climate Risk Index (1990-2009), our country is the 7 th
most affected by weather-related disasters based on deaths and losses. The top 3 list includes
Honduras, Myanmar, and number 1 is Bangladesh. It is also worth noting that among the ten
countries most affected, all of them are developing countries. These countries, including the
Philippines, are often the ones least prepared to mitigate the risks of disasters.
After the onslaught of the natural disasters, the suffering continues for the poor in the
disaster-stricken areas. They are the ones who have lost their homes, and sometimes even their
livelihoods. On a microeconomic level, these affected households usually succumb to usurious
18

interest rates from loan sharks. This further exacerbates their financial problems, burying them
deeper and deeper in povertys quicksand.
However, it is not only natural disasters that can cause catastrophic setbacks on the war
against poverty. For instance, in 1997, our country was hit by El Nio, and at the same time, the
Asian Financial Crisis gripped the region and caused our economic growth in the following year
to virtually zero. (Goel, 2009)
The Philippines is particularly vulnerable to external crises, whether natural, political or
economic, because her more than eight million overseas workers are deployed in more than a
hundred host countries.6 The recent political turmoil in the Middle East and the earthquakes that
devastated Japan have already been felt not just by the workers who were displaced but also by
the and had negative impacts on our economy.
Cause # 6 Inequality
Economists use the Gini coefficient to measure the degree of income inequality in a country.
(Arnold, 2008) A Gini coefficient is a value between 0 and 1, where 0 represents perfect income
equality while a value of 1 means perfect income inequality. The table below shows the Gini
coefficient of the Philippines, those of our neighbors in the South East Asian region, and the
values from the developed countries. Although our Gini coefficient has been shown to decrease
in the past three surveys, we are still far from the values in the developed countries which range
from 0.2 -0.3s. It can also be observed that in the South East Asian region, we have the highest
Gini coefficient. On a positive note, the decrease in our Gini coefficient shows that the income
distribution is improving.
Figure 11. Gini coefficients of the Philippines, ASEAN, and developed countries. (Source: NSCB Official Poverty
Statistics 2009)

6 OFW Remittances Data, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. www.bsp.gov.ph

19

A country can have strong growth rates in GDP but if their Gini coefficient is high, then it
means that the income from the growth is concentrated in the upper echelons of society. This can
lead to a widening gap or divide between the rich and the poor. Economist Antonio de los Reyes
described the social divide in the Philippines as a disgrace. According to him, we have something
like 400 families owning 50% of the total wealth in our country. Furthermore, 17% of the
population owns 78% of the resources and 83% owning 22%. Social historians have often
blamed the unequal land distribution in our country as the primary cause of this social divide,
pointing out that the wealthy families in the Philippines started out as hacienderos or farm
landowners.
Unfortunately, the gap continues to widen and worsen as those on top of the social strata
are able to send their children to private schools that offer first-class education, while those in the
bottom can barely send their kids to public schools that are very much lacking in materials and
resources.

20

Part 4
The Governments Role
If poverty is a disease that infects the entire community
in the form of unemployment and violence,
failing schools and broken homes,
then we can't just treat those symptoms in isolation.
We have to heal that entire community.
-- Barack Obama

21

The question, How can we end poverty? echoes and reverberates in all nations, across
continents, around the world. Policies and programs for poverty alleviation are constantly
initiated and developed by national governments and international organizations. Examples date
back to the 1500s with the English Poor Laws that provided welfare to women, children, the
elder and handicapped. Another innovation was President Roosevelts New Deal which was
later expanded by President Eisenhower to include social welfare programs to ease the economic
depression.7 And more recently, the Grameen Bank, which provides credit to the poorest of the
poor.
In September 2000, the 191-member states of the United
Nations launched the Millennium Development Goals. The
goals formed eight focal points in the global war against
poverty and social ills. In trying to achieve these goals, more
and more countries are turning to CTTP. A recent article in the
New York Times pointed out that the CCTPs in Brazil (Bolsa
Familia) and Mexico (Oportunidades) have been found to have
dramatic impacts in poor childrens health and education. 8 This
investment on human capital is seen as a critical key in breaking
UN Millennium Development
the inter-generational poverty-cycle.
Goals

Making ends meet

It was former President, now Congresswoman, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyos
administration that started the 4Ps with the encouragement and assistance of the World Bank and
the Asian Development Bank. With the aim of promoting human capital development among
poor families, especially children, to break the intergenerational cycle of poverty, the Philippine
government pilot-tested a Conditional Cash Transfer Program called Pantawid Pamilyang
Pilipino Program or 4Ps in 2007. Initial results showed significant increases in school
enrolment, child immunization, and prenatal medical care.9
After the success of the pilot program, an allocation of P298M in the 2008 national budget and
the 4Ps was formally launched in February 2008 with a target of almost 400,000 households.
Three years on, the program has expanded. P21.2 billion has been set aside for the conditional
cash transfers (CCT) to be given to 2.3 million household-beneficiaries, 1.3 million more than
the 1 million who benefited from the program in 2010.10
Beyond the bridge

7 Eduardo Zepeda and Diana Alarcn, Employment Guarantee and Conditional Cash Transfers Programs for
Poverty Reduction, 2010.

8 Tina Rosenberg, To Beat Back Poverty, Pay the Poor, The New York Times, January 3, 2011.
9 DSWD, April 4, 2011. <www.dswd.gov.ph/index.php/archive/2096-cash-incentives-forfamilies-in-philippines-to-keep-children-healthy-in-school>
10 Official Gazette, April 4, 2011. < http://www.gov.ph/2010/08/24/president-aquinos-2011budget-message>
22

Kung walang corrupt, walang mahirap! was President Aquinos battlecry in his
campaign when he ran on a platform of anti-corruption. And it hit home with 15.1 million voters
who believed that its better to have honesty and transparency than sipag at tiyaga or galing at
talino.
Our people are yearning for public managers who only entertain ethical choices. We are
longing for justice, a deep desire to set things right and to put those who are guilty of abuse of
power behind bars. We are ready and vigilant, but we need the sharp teeth of the law. In
particular, we need to pass a strong Freedom of Information Act. According to an article on the
Importance of Freedom of Information to the Anti-corruption Campaign, Vitus Azeem asserts
that fighting poverty necessarily involves fighting corruption and fighting corruption
necessarily requires transparency and accountability, including making information on public
transactions open to the public on whose behalf these transactions are undertaken. The
dissemination of information about public affairs and the management of public issues is one of
the most frequently-cited anticorruption measures. Transparency and responsibility generate a
mutual trust among citizens and causes anyone who leads an organization or institution to direct
relations and management toward the common interest. Thus, for governance institutions and
civil society groups working on transparency and anticorruption, freedom of information
(unfettered access to information) is very essential for them to monitor, expose and root out
corruption. These watchdog groups need information to mobilize the citizenry to monitor and
help to root out corruption. They need credible information to confront officials engaged in
corrupt practices and pressurize them to refund looted public resources and resign and/or compel
government to sanction them. These watchdog groups can also pass along such information to
journalists, present proof of corrupt dealings to the media and members of the judiciary, and
initiate legal action against corrupt officials, where possible. All these activities and actions
cannot be possible if these groups do not have access to information and cannot compel public
office holders to make relevant information available to them. It is, therefore, clear that a
Freedom of Information Act is essential for the fight against corruption. If information can be
readily accessed, those in power would obviously fear to commit acts of corruption as they can
then be brought to court.
The ADBs Investment Climate and Productivity Study reported that corruption in the
Philippines affects exporters more than non-exporters and foreign firms more than domestic
firms. Transactions at the Customs Bureau are particularly perceived to be riddled with
corruption. (Asian Development Bank, 2005)
In Transparency Internationals 2010 Corruption Perception Index (CPI), the Philippines
fared badly yet again, ranking 134th among 178 countries surveyed. As stated by TI chairman
Huguette Labelle of TI, Allowing corruption to continue is unacceptable; too many poor and
vulnerable people continue to suffer its consequences around the world. There should be
nowhere to hide for the corrupt or their money.
What are we in power for

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We often hear reports that involve politicians who seem to think that they are above the law. It is
quite ironic that the lawmakers are themselves are sometimes the violators of the law, to the
extent that they circumvent our fundamental laws.
The simple act of taking down the sirens of government officials, as ordered by the
President Aquinos restriction on the use of wang-wang has brought back some sense into those
in power, reminding them that they are in the government not to brandish their authority, but to
serve.
The politicos rhetoric, during elections and voting, is filled with promises for the poor. It
is high on hopes for quality public services and good governance. But poverty is not just a
political issue. It is a social issue, one that needs our urgent attention. With the support of the
private sector and other organizations, our government can help reduce poverty. Let us join in
our Presidents policy thrusts in transparency, rule of law, good governance, and daang matuwid
(straight path) to help create a society which can reduce and perhaps eradicate poverty. A society
where Juan and Juana de la Cruz can enjoy a standard of living adequate for their and their
familys health and well-being, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary
social services.

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ASEAN. (1998, December 7-8). Chairman's Statement of the First Informal Meeting of
ASEAN Ministers on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication . Retrieved May 30,
2011, from ASEAN Web Site: http://www.asean.org/20308.htm
Asian Development Bank. (2009). Poverty in the Philippines: Causes, Constraints, and
Opportunities.
Asian Development Bank. (2005). Poverty in the Philippines: Income, Assets, and Access.
Bojicic, S. (2010). America... America... Or Is It? Indiana, USA: AuthorHouse.
Goel, S. (2009). Crisis Management: Master the Skills to Prevent Disasters. New Delhi: Global
India Publications.
Harmeling, S. (2010). Global Climate Risk Index 2011. Berlin: Germanwatch e.V.
Holmes, C. C. (2002). Crime and Poverty. Retrieved May 2011, from Orange County Public
Defender: http://www.pubdef.ocgov.com/poverty.htm
Mangahas, M. (2010, June 25). Fighting poverty, blindfolded . The Philippine Daily Inquirer .
National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB). (2011). 2009 Philippine Poverty Statistics.
Makati, Philippines: NSCB.

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