Aquino government hits below 20% hunger mark

The Self-Rated Hunger survey of the Social Weather Stations posted some heartening results recently: for the first time since June 2011, the number of Filipino families experiencing hunger has dropped below the 20% mark. The May 24-27 results indicate that the number went down from 4.8 million households last March to just 3.8 million. This is consistent with their findings on poverty and food poverty, where the proportion of food-poor families sank from 45% to 39%.

The occurrence of involuntary hunger in Filipino households was said to be at a record high in March, posting at 23.8%. But improved economic conditions over-all and vigorous efforts on the part of government to fight poverty and hunger may have contributed to the lowering of self-rated hunger to only 18.4%.

From a regional perspective, overall hunger plummeted by almost 14 points, from 28% to 14.3% (or 1.3 million families) throughout Luzon. In Metro Manila, it fell by over 8 points, from 24.3% to 16% (or 454,000 families).

In contrast, results from the Southern regions show an increase in hunger, posting a rise of over 7 points (from 7.7% to 15%) in the Visayas and a little over 2% in Mindanao (from 20% to 22.3%). This comes in the aftermath of several natural calamities that have devastated these regions, and the complex rehabilitation process required once emergency work ends and the rebuilding of communities begins. Another reason is the protracted conflict in Mindanao, which limits the access to food for many displaced families.

Improvements were apparent among respondents experiencing moderate or severe hunger over the past three months. Moderate hunger happens when a household has experienced hunger at least once or a few times, while severe hunger means having nothing to eat most of the time. The percentage of moderately hungry families has dipped from 18% (3.7 million families) to almost 14% (nearly 2.8 million families), while that of severely hungry families fell from 5.8% (1.2 million households) to 4.8% (974,000 households).

As Secretary Edwin Lacierda has pointed out, such findings could be mirroring the gradual effect of Department of Social Welfare and Development programs like the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, the Supplemental Feeding Program and the Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services. The Hunger Alleviation and Improved Nutrition (HAIN) of the Human Development and Poverty Reduction Cabinet Cluster also addresses malnutrition among children, improves the food intake of families, increases the income opportunities of target households, disseminates nutritional information and strengthens the practice of key health concepts.

While short-term spikes are encouraging and certainly prompt the government to monitor the success of its programs more closely, long-term trends are most meaningful, which is what the government is ultimately aiming for.

Over-all, we appear to be moving in this general direction. The results reflect the fruits of a favorable economic climate. The rate of inflation—a crucial factor in perceiving hunger because it dictates the prices of basic commodities—is now at a more manageable 2.9%, as reported by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. In addition, Foreign Direct Investments have soared to 258%, greatly supporting more Philippine industries (particularly in the manufacturing and real estate sectors). Finally, the strong employment turn-out for the past few months (at 1 million jobs) has generated more stable income-generating opportunities, leading to increased household spending for necessities, which include food. Less Filipino families are now suffering from hunger, and we expect this to be a continuing trend. - Official Gazette — ARA