President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s laser focus on cutting poverty incidence to a single digit of 9 percent before the end of his term is bearing fruit.

Two surveys have shown that the number of  Filipinos rating themselves as “hindi mahirap” has decreased since President Marcos assumed office on June 30, 2022.

President Marcos has emphasized the improvement of food availability and affordability, education, and social welfare while addressing bottleneck issues including those that affect small-scale businesses, public utilities, transportation services, and safety in the streets.

Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority’s (PSA) Family Income and Expenditure Survey showed that in 2006, one in every five families or 21 percent had incomes below the poverty line. In 2015, 18.9 percent of families earned below the poverty level.

Family incomes improved under the Marcos administration as the PSA reported that in 2023, only one in every 10 Filipino families or 10.9 percent reported incomes below the poverty level.

Likewise, data from the independent firm Social Weather Stations (SWS) through its Self-Rated Poverty survey in April this year showed that the number of respondents who felt poor decreased, from 57 percent in 2024 to 50 percent this year.

While the 2025 figure may be higher than those recorded during the 2016-2023 period, SWS chairman emeritus Dr. Mahar Mangahas pointed out that respondents who identified themselves as “hindi mahirap” are at a new high of 42 percent.

In his June 14, 2025 column in the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Mangahas called it “the most remarkable new development” in the survey.

He also underscored the significant decline in the number of respondents who identified themselves as borderline poor – from 39 percent recorded in 2021 the record-low 8 percent this year.

Meanwhile, data from the PSA showed a steady unemployment rate of 4 percent since 2023. The unemployment figure is lower than when President Marcos took office in June 2022. | PND