The 2002 Annual Poverty Indicators Survey (APIS) is the third in a series of nationwide poverty indicators survey undertaken by the Philippines National Statistics Office (PNSO) designed to provide access and impact indicators that can be used as inputs to the development of an integrated poverty indicator and monitoring system for the assessment of the government programs on poverty alleviation and for the use of policy makers and planners. A total of 38,014 sample households or 92.7 percent were interviewed for the current APIS undertaken last July 2002.
Family’s Perception on Welfare |
2002 |
1999 |
Total Families (‘000) |
15,925 |
14,746 |
In the last 12 months |
|
|
Better Off |
15.3 |
13.8 |
Worse Off |
30.8 |
33.9 |
About the Same |
53.9 |
52.3 |
In the next 12 months |
|
|
Improve |
34.6 |
29.4 |
Stay the Same |
51.7 |
50.1 |
Worsen |
13.7 |
20.5 |
The percentage of families who assessed they were better off in the last 12 months stood at 15.3 percent. The proportion was half the percentage of families who professed they were worse off at 30.8 percent or 3 in every 10 families. However, compared to the 1999 results, the proportion of families who rated themselves as better off went up by 1.5 percentage points while those families who said otherwise dropped to 3.1 percentage points. Still, more than half of the families, considered their situation about the same as before in 2002 (53.9 percent), higher by 1.6 percentage points in 1999 at 52.3 percent.
Among the significant reasons families reported that they were better off were more earnings (49.1 percent), better health (13.2 percent) and new job with higher salary (10.4 percent). On the other hand, reduced income (30.9 percent), increased food prices (30.4 percent) and lost of job (11.5 percent) were the bases why they described their situation as worse off. The family’s most common steps cited to cope with their worse situation were: changed the eating pattern (48.3 percent), increased working hours (41.8 percent) and received assistance from friends (27.2 percent).
Majority of the reporting families (51.7 percent) saw themselves staying the same in the next 12 months as before. The proportion of families who perceived their situation to improve was 34.6 percent while13.7 percent thought otherwise.
In a ladder of welfare status from 1 (lowest rank) to 10 (highest rank), about 27.3 percent of total families rated themselves in the 5th step, 20.7 percent or 1 in every 5 families were in the 3rd step while those families who regarded themselves above the 5th step comprised 12 percent of the total families.
(Sgd.) CARMELITA N. ERICTA
Administrator
Source: Income and Employment Statistics Division
National Statistics Office
Republic of the Philippines