Poor Filipinos down to 10.5M families – survey

The number of Filipinos who rated themselves as poor has dropped to 10.5 million families, from 11.2 million families in December, 2015, the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showed. In the survey conducted from March 30 to April 2, 2016, it revealed that 46 percent of 1, 500 respondents (equivalent to 10.5 million families) claimed that they are “mahirap” or poor.  This is a four-percentage point lower than the 50 percent Filipinos (11.2 million families) who claimed they are poor in the survey conducted December last year. According to SWS data, the lowest self-poverty perception was recorded at 45 percent in 2011, while the highest was during the reign of former President Ferdinand Marcos in July, 1985, at 74 percent. Based on the survey, a decline on the self-rated poverty  was noted in Balance Luzon, 44 percent; National Capital Region, 30 percent; and Visayas, 57 percent. There was a [...]