The number of poor Filipinos dropped to 16.1 percent in the first half of 2018, a significant improvement from the 22.2 percent recorded during the same period of 2015, the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) said.
NEDA Usec. Carlos Bernardo Abad Santos, citing the latest report by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), said that the government remains on track to meets its poverty incidence reduction target as the number of poor Filipinos dropped to 23.1 million in January-March 2018, from 28.8 million in 2015.
A family of five (5) needs to spend at least P10,481 a month for food and non-food items to not be considered poor.
The drop in poverty incidence was attributed to the increase in the average income of Filipino households – from 15.2 percent to 21.2 percent – largely due to the growth in the construction industry and better employment opportunity, NEDA said.
The increase in the average income also cushioned the effects of higher prices of goods as a result of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law.
Last year, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez said that the government aims to lift at least a million Filipinos from poverty line annually to the 14 percent poverty incidence by the end of the term of President Rodrigo Duterte.
