More than one in two Filipino families, or 53 percent, consider themselves as poor, a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey found out. The September 2009 self-rated poverty figure, which translates to 9.7 million families, was slightly higher than the 50 percent figure reported in the June survey.
That meant than in just three months, 400,000 more families have rated themselves as poor.
SWS noted, however, that self-rated poverty “has been at levels of 50 percent and above since March 2008 except in February 2009 when it was at 47 percent.”
Meanwhile, 28 percent of the respondents put themselves on the poverty borderline, while 20 percent consider themselves as not poor.
Self-rated poverty declined by five points in
SWS added that self-rated poverty rose slightly by two points in urban areas, from 44 percent to 46 percent, and by one point in rural areas, from 58 percent to 59 percent.
Self-rated food poverty
The SWS also reported that 41 percent of Filipino families, or about 7.5 million, consider themselves as “food-poor.” Self-rated food poverty increased as well.
“Self-Rated Food Poverty rate has steadily risen from 36 percent in February, 39 percent in June, and 41 percent in September of 2009 after declining from 42 percent in December 2008,” SWS reported.
Meanwhile, 35 percent of the survey respondents put themselves on the food poverty borderline, while 24 percent consider themselves as not food-poor.
Like self-rated poverty, self-rated food poverty also declined in
The latest SWS survey on self-rated poverty and self-rated food poverty was conducted from September 18 to 21, using face-to-face interviews of 1,800 adults divided into random samples of 300 each in Metro Manila and Mindanao, and 600 each in the balance of
The survey’s margins of error are plus or minus 2.3 percent for national percentages, plus or minus 6 percent for Metro Manila and Mindanao, and plus or minus 4 percent for the balance
