The administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. is on track to attain a single-digit poverty rate by 2028 due to the country’s current strong economic performance, a government economist said on Saturday.
“iyong poverty rate na nilalabas ng PSA (Philippine Statistics Authority) mababa… bumaba din. Actually, medyo mataas pa rin, 15.5 percent ‘pag titingnan iyong individuals. But iyong importante dito, we’re on track,” Finance Undersecretary Domini Velasquez said during a news forum in Quezon City.
“Hopefully sa end ng President Marcos administration, below 10 percent at single digit na siya. So, we’re on track actually to bring down poverty to single digit,” says Velasquez, the chief economist of the Department of Finance (DOF).
Among the economic indicators, Velasquez cited the country’s second-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth, with the Philippine economy expanding by 6.3 percent from the first quarter’s 5.8 percent.
According to Velasquez, investments and construction recorded marked increases as the government aggressively funds big-ticket infrastructure projects to push the Build Better More program.
However, spending among Filipino consumers remains conservative, Velasquez said. She expects aggressive spending soon because of good employment figures and remittances from Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).
“Mukhang mababa ‘to dahil kasi ‘di ba naalala ninyo two years ago, two years na actually mataas iyong inflation natin at 6 percent, 5.8 percent last year. Pero ngayon pababa na kaya hopefully mas maganda iyong maging, kumbaga maging outlook in terms ng household consumption,” she said.
The Philippines’ unemployment figures are also positive, Velasquez said, adding that the latest unemployment number was at 3.1 percent compared to the pre-pandemic record of around 5.1 percent.
“So, actually, mas maganda iyong employment – mas madaming mga taong nagkakatrabaho; underemployment although medyo above… around 12 percent pa rin pero medyo mas mababa din compared doon sa pandemic,” Velasquez said.
“Tapos iyong isang importante dito is iyong… sa mga nagtatrabaho, sino iyong wage and salary workers, iyong nakakakuha ng income kada buwan. So, mataas din iyong share noon kaya okay din iyon,” she added.
Last July, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) reported that despite experiencing domestic and external challenges, the Philippines has made remarkable strides in reducing poverty levels between 2021 and 2023, marking significant progress toward the government’s ambitious target of reducing poverty incidence to a single-digit level by 2028.
The PSA released last month the 2023 Full Year Official Poverty Statistics, showing that poverty incidence among the population significantly dropped to 15.5 percent from 18.1 percent in 2021. PND
