SWS Survey: Fewer Filipino Families Rate Themselves Poor

Filipino families who rated themselves poor declined by six percent, breaking two quarters of successive increases, latest survey from independent pollster Social Weather Station (SWS) show.

The self-rated poverty survey show that 44 percent of the respondents or 10.1 million families consider themselves poor from quarter ending June, down from the 50 percent or estimated 11.5 million families in March 2017.

Some 1,200 heads of families were polled. The survey, conducted from June 23-26, was first published by BusinessWorld. It had sampling error margins of ±3 points for national percentages and ±6% each for Metro Manila, Balance of Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao.

The survey said the decrease in self-rated poverty was attributed to the “easing poverty in Balance Luzon and Metro Manila that cushioned slight increases in the Visayas and Mindanao.”

Self-rated poverty declined by 16 points in Balance Luzon at 34% and slipped eight points in Metro Manila at 28%.

In the Visayas, self-rated poverty rose by seven points at 64% and climbed four points in Mindanao at 57%.

Previous data from SWS show that when President Rodrigo R. Duterte came to office in June last year, self-rated poverty was at 45 percent.

It fell to 42 percent by end-September and rose for two consecutive quarters — 44% by end-December and 50% by end-March. (Janice M. Cave/PNA)