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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 14) – A national self-rated poverty survey showed that 48% of Philippine families, or around 12 million, rated themselves as ‘poor’, a six point decrease from the previous 54% recorded in December of the year past.
Social Weather Stations, which conducted the survey in November, said that a family is considered poor if its budget for household expenses falls below the threshold set for a particular area.
In Metro Manila and Visayas, the threshold is set at a monthly budget of ₱ 15,000, according to SWS. The threshold is lower in Balance Luzon (or areas in Luzon outside of Metro Manila) and in Mindanao at ₱ 10,000. These also raise the national median threshold to $ 12,000.
The SWS survey also showed that the number of families in the country that consider themselves ‘bordering on poverty’ grew by 13 points to 36%.
The percentage of those who rated themselves as “not poor” also fell by seven points to 16%. The SWS saw declines in this category in Balance Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.
Of the self-rated poor families, about two million are “new poor,” the SWS said. This means that they rated themselves non-poor one or four years ago.
Regarding food poverty, 31% of families classified themselves as food poor, while 47% as borderline food poverty. The SWS noted that the percentage of those who do not feel poor in food fell “in all areas” nationally to 22%.
By SWS standards, a family in Metro Manila or Visayas must have a monthly food budget of at least $ 8,000 to be out of the “poor” classification. Meanwhile, the food poverty threshold is set at $ 7,000 in Balance Luzon and $ 5,000 in Mindanao. These raise the national median food poverty threshold to $ 7,000.
The survey was conducted through face-to-face interviews with 1,500 adults across the country, with questions “directed at heads of household,” according to SWS.
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