argumentative essay about poverty in philippines

Community Developments

The outreach blog : from the field, the state of poverty in the philippines: what are the causes.

The Philippines and its roughly 117,000,000 people have struggled with income inequality for generations. Even as infrastructure and opportunity has improved in highly populated areas in recent decades, poverty in the Philippines, particularly for people living in remote areas, remains a serious issue.

In this blog post, you’ll learn about the complex issue of chronic poverty in the Philippines, its causes, and its impact on families. Additionally, you’ll see how Outreach International is working to alleviate poverty in this Southeast Asian nation.

Decoding Poverty: A Deep Dive into the Statistics

According to the World Bank , between 1985 and 2018, the poverty rate in the Philippines declined by two-thirds, thanks to economic growth initiatives and investment in infrastructure, including education. However, the improvements were largely focused in the most populated areas, where the most opportunities already existed. According to the Asian Development Bank , the top one percent of earners have benefitted the most, capturing 17 percent of the national income, while only 14 percent of national income is obtained by the lowest-earning 50 percent of the population.

The Philippines’ income inequality stems from several structural factors. Higher education and job skills development remain out of reach for many. Unequal access to college, and social norms that leave women at a disadvantage, also contribute to persistent inequality. And the geography of this archipelago nation makes the issue even more difficult to solve, as opportunities and natural resources are unevenly distributed.

Understanding the Impact of Family Poverty

Family poverty is not just about financial struggle. It affects every aspect of a household’s well-being. Children who live in poverty are less likely to enroll in school and reach age-appropriate grade levels because their time is needed to help the family strive to meet their basic daily subsistence needs. This stifles their access to higher education and the future opportunities it would bring, limiting earning potential, the potential economic growth of families, and the possibility of community development.

Managing Resources: Addressing Poverty in High Population Areas

Population density has a significant impact on poverty in the Philippines. High-population areas often struggle to manage limited natural and government resources, which negatively impacts quality of life. And a lack of job opportunities in densely populated areas contributes to poverty rates. These challenges trickle into remote areas, making it even more difficult for rural communities and marginalized people to break their own unending cycle of poverty .

Living Conditions and Resource Challenges

Living conditions in densely populated areas of the Philippines are affected by resource scarcity and inadequate government support systems. Access to basic necessities like electricity, safe drinking water, and quality education remains uneven. This scarcity not only limits the potential for development across the nation but also perpetuates inequality. As a result, impoverished communities face daily struggles, making it all the more challenging to break free from the cycle of poverty.

The Pandemic’s Impact: A Crisis Amplifying Poverty

The COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on poverty in the Philippines. In 2020, the pandemic halted economic growth, leading to even higher unemployment rates. As this trend continued into 2021, poverty rates rose to 18.1 percent (World Bank). This amounts to just under 20 million people. And though the economy continues to recover, this recovery is uneven, with the poorest households benefiting the least. As improvements are bringing many areas back to normal, communities in many remote areas still struggle to bring their economies back to even just the already challenging pre-pandemic levels.

One constant struggle for families living in poverty is food insecurity. And according to sources such as the National Library of Medicine , this became even more significant during the pandemic. Almost two-thirds (61.2%) of households experienced moderate to severe food insecurity during the many months of quarantine. And with rising food prices and limited natural resources, vulnerable households often had to limit their food intake. This caused a lack of proper nutrition, particularly for children. Outreach International has implemented an effective method of combating food insecurity for even the most impoverished families. Our partners in OPI have helped community-led organizations develop rice loans . These are low-interest loans of rice or the funds to buy it. And because the communities manage these loans themselves, borrowers can avoid predatory outside lending institutions and can deal with people they know and trust.

Initiatives That Changed the Reality

In response to the challenges posed by the pandemic, both the Philippine government and organizations like Outreach International have implemented various initiatives to alleviate poverty and its effects. Some organizations have provided health services and relief assistance to affected communities. Such initiatives are essential in mitigating the immediate impact of the crisis and helping vulnerable populations in the short term.

But Outreach International also focuses on more long-term and sustainable initiatives that can forever break the cycle of poverty . Our methodology of community-led development allows people who live in chronic poverty to learn that they have the power within themselves to improve their lives permanently. Our partners in the Philippines, Outreach Philippines Incorporated (OPI), work with leaders in communities to identify their own unique poverty-related issues, and then mobilize to solve them. They learn how to develop networks with government agencies and NGOs that are able to provide resources. And they learn how to set ever-increasing goals of improvement, leading to continuous development that is sustainable for generations.

Join the Cause: How You Can Help

You can choose to play a role in alleviating poverty in the Philippines. And there are so many ways to help , from donating to Outreach International to fundraising to volunteering . By working together, we can collectively make a difference in the lives of those affected by poverty in the Philippines.

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Poverty, Government and Unequal Distribution of Wealth in Philippines Essay

Poverty data gathering tools, etiologies of poverty, programs to alleviate poverty.

Filipinos are in grave situations of poverty as of now. According to UNDP statistic last 2004; the numerical rate 36.8% is the poverty level of the entire Filipino population. Crude estimation of this count into raw rate is 70 million Filipinos are below poverty line. However, statistics do not reveal the complex nature of poverty; indeed, it is a mistake to assume that poverty can be measured in monetary definitions (Eadie 35).

The Philippines provides a concrete example of GDP growth that did not reduce poverty, although the economy recorded growth of more than 4% in 3 of the past 4 years. The 2003 FIES illustrates average family incomes to have increased by only 2.5% over the 2000 level, while the CPI shows an inflation rate of 13.9%. Judging all these data obtained, it is therefore almost certain that the poverty level has increased during this period. It most likely has increased by a greater level than from 1997–2000, when average family incomes has grown by 18%, inflation has been 22%, and the poverty incidence of the population has increased by 1% (Poverty in the Philippines 2). The author of the book Poverty And The Critical Security Agenda , Eadie (33), added:

Quantitative analyses of poverty have become more sophisticated over the years to be sure, yet remain problematic and in certain ways rooted in assumptions of rational choice behavior. For instance, poverty can be measured through simple income and expenditures or poverty line however; this does not account the expenditures on those goods and services that are variables for well-being such as food and education. Negative expenditures, such as alcohol or cigarettes, also play part in the considerations.

With this, various instrumentations are being utilized to assess the conditions of poverty. Subjective claims remain to be weak basis if it is not validated. Subjective inferences are those data obtained from the subjects but have no specific proofs or reference in any study done by trained individuals. Objectivity is a must in statistical gathering however, if this is not provided proper validation, still the data remains to be weak basis (Maglaya 176).

Poverty measurement practices for determining the numerical data partly reflect what we know – or think we know – about inequality and poverty profiles in the Philippines. According to Edmonds in his book, Reducing Poverty in Asia: Emerging Issues in Growth, Targeting, and Measurement , the phase of assessment usually involves the set poverty lines and welfare indicators. This is where statistics label an individual poor. Such considerations are dealt first before producing such claims (Eadie 198).

In terms of welfare indicators, determining the magnitude of poverty and inequality the government uses current household incomes and expenditures via national surveys. Using standard arguments in microeconomic theory, it can be concluded that since welfare level are being determined by “life-cycle” or permanent income, and since current consumption is a good approximation of this income, current consumption can be better justified as a measure of current welfare. This, however, does not suggest that income does not vary over time. It does, and sometimes these changes are largely comparable to the former (p.198-199).

Talking about setting poverty lines, this does not depend on subgroup’s conditions or to which standard of living do they belong. Poverty lines constructed for various subgroups must be fixed in terms of given standard of living. These set are said to be consistent and imply the same command over basic necessities of consumptions. It is well known that as household income rises, the consumption of cheap and low quality goods decrease and the families focus more on the quality products that they can still afford. These are some of the scenarios that indicating the dynamic characteristic that affects poverty lines (Eadie 200).

Another sophisticated data-gathering tool in quantitative diagnosis of poverty conditions is by the use of Human Development Index (HDI) that has been introduced by ul Haq in the 1990s. This involves the consideration of life expectancy, literacy rate and GDP per capita. The HDI is now being used by the United Nations Development Programme or UNDP, to rank countries in terms of their economic development status. According to the 2004 Human Development UNDP repot, the Philippines has been ranked 83 rd and considered to be a medium development country. The advantage of this tool is the test of comparison between different countries annually. However, the negative aspect that coincide in this method it its limitation towards other factors such as domestic variations that exists between different regions, rural and urban areas that exist in the household. This primarily occurs because of the generalized perspective of this intervention (Eadie.39-40).

Filipinos are usually known for their extravagant fiestas and their various tourist attractions. The proud natural resources have lured “balikbayans” or Filipinos from abroad and tourists. Adding into that are the OFW or Overseas Filipino Workers that produce additional income for the country through remittances. Aside from the macro-economical income source of Philippine government, such conditions give off pseudo-economic boost for the country’s economy. DFA or Department of Foreign Affairs has estimated that there are 5,488,167 Filipinos working overseas that are scattered to over 193 countries during 2002 (Arya 72). The question left for the public is where does this sum of money go considering that the incomes both internal and external are present? Such question triggers the public minds that usually cause demonstrations and governmental blame.

Another factor to be considered is the Philippine international debts that primarily occurred during the time of Marcos and has progressed in the current regime. Sad to mention but as of today, Filipinos are part of the 100 most heavily indebted poor and middle-income countries that must service over 2.3 trillion American dollars in combined debt-stock yearly (Debt for Equity Eadie). According to an online data, Poverty in the Philippines , economic growth has become insufficient in order to support the population growth of the country: GNP per capita has lingered at around $1,000 for the past 20 years and has not even increased. Disasters that have occurred are one of the main reasons that tarnished the economy of the Philippines. Importantly, the crisis came at the same time as the devastating El Niño drought during mid-1990s. This evidently caused domino effect in the economy of the Philippines in which decline has been the particular evident strata. Here is the list of the chronic macroeconomic problems in the Philippines that have long been occurring:

• Gradually diminishing revenue collection inducing fiscal deficit and heavy public sector debt
• Low investment environment that results in particularly low foreign direct investment
• Inactive loans in the banking firms
• Chronic loss of international competitiveness
• Corrupt structural governance and inefficient economic management

In the article found in the official website of the Philippine government (27) entitled, Poverty alleviation tops PGMA’s main goals in the next 3 years, proclaims the president’s own statement regarding her programs and future programs for the alleviation of poverty.

She said increased government earnings or revenues either through raising the effective collection of taxes or sale of government assets is necessary component of poverty alleviation. With the raised revenues, she said the next important thing to do in the next three years is to invest more in human resources and physical infrastructures to create jobs and upgrade the country’s competitiveness. She said social services, like making cheap medicines available, improved healthcare and anti-hunger campaign, which are already being addressed by her administration, are also important components of the poverty reduction program of her administration.

The president’s statement has been questionable to most of the public and the tarnished trust of the people’s body has greatly affected the initiations of this plan. People’s cooperation has become difficult to initiate due to the governmental corruptions that have occurred. The effectiveness of such programs being implemented by the Philippine government has seen to be effective however, only for a short time (Glatzer 124). Most of the programs regarding poverty alleviation are still ongoing as per current administration. Target outcomes of these projects are 2010. However, according to some critics, the results so far of these projects are not yet being that evident (Debt for Equity…27).

The poverty status of the Philippines has not yet been alleviated. The condition of poverty still affects more almost half of the Filipino population. The inequalities of resources partitions are not specific hence; the divisions of such are also affected. The question about the condition of poverty and inequalities in the Philippines is now answerable by the summary of the crude poverty rate 40% and 70 million poor families living in this country. These poverty claims are being validated by the use of Human Development Index (HDI) that are also being utilized by the (UNDP) United Nation development Programme in order to obtain their data. Various notes are important upon the obtaining of these data such as welfare indicators and setting of poverty lines. The probable etiologies of this poverty in terms of macro-economical scope, as addressed in the body of study, are the following gradually diminishing revenue collection inducing fiscal deficit and heavy public sector debt, low investment environment that results in particularly low foreign direct investment, inactive loans in the banking firms, chronic loss of international competitiveness and the corrupt structural governance and inefficient economic management. There are programs being initiated to combat poverty situations however, as according to the study the results seem to be not evident especially for the public’s perspective. Poverty still lingers and unequal distribution of resources are still present in the Philippine society.

Arya, Sally. Living Home: Filipino Women Surviving Migration. In M. C. Pagaduan (Ed.), Poverty, Gender and Migration (pp. 72). Sage Publications Inc, 2006.

Arya, Sally. Poverty, Gender and Migration . Sage Publications Inc, 2006.

Barcelon, Ed. Fight Philippine poverty.(Voice from the South). Manila Bulletin . 2007. Web.

Debt for Equity in MDG Projects; A Philippine Proposal for Converting 50 percent of the Debt Owed by the 100 highly indebted countries to equity investments in the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations.(Opinion & Editorial) [Letter to The Editor]. Manila Bulletin .2011. Web.

Eadie, Peter. Poverty And The Critical Security Agenda . Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2005.

Edmonds, Cedric. M. Reducing Poverty in Asia: Emerging Issues in Growth, Targeting, and Measurement . Edward Elgar Publishing, 2003.

Glatzer, Walter. Rich and Poor: Disparities, Perceptions, Concomitants . Springer, 2002.

Maglaya, Allan. S. Nursing Practice in the Community . Marikina City: Argonauta Corporation, 2005.

Orbeta Jose., H. C. Family, Vulnerability and Family Size: Evidence from the Philippines. In H. Khan (Ed.), Poverty Strategies in Asia: A Growth Plus Approach (pp. 72). Edward Elgar Publishing, 2006.

Poverty-in-the-Philippines: Causes of Poverty in the Philippines . 2011. Web.

Poverty Strategies in Asia: A Growth Plus Approach . 2010. Web.

Son, John.Philippines: For Growth to Continue, Poverty Rate Must Come Down. Inter Press Service English News Wire , 1997, pp. F3.

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Guest Essay

Pandemic Pantries in the Streets? You Communist!

By Glenn Diaz

Mr. Diaz is a writer based in Manila. His second novel, “Yñiga,” about the spate of political killings in the Philippines in the 2000s, was shortlisted for the 2020 Novel Prize.

MANILA — The day the city went back into a hard lockdown in late March, I started a ritual: Trapped again, I took to counting the ambulance sirens I’d hear from my place in Quezon City, the most populous area of this sprawling capital. At one point, blare after dystopian blare came every 20 minutes or so.

The confirmed Covid-19 case total in the Philippines breached the one million mark in late April. New daily cases were averaging about 7,700 this week, down from a peak of about 10,800 in mid-April, but that’s still considerably more than the previous high of about 4,400 in late August. And the Department of Health warned recently that the situation could quickly worsen again and the Philippines could face the “big possibility” of an “India-like” catastrophe.

Dire superlatives limn the costs of the state’s neglect. Figures for infections and deaths per capita in the Philippines are now the worst in Southeast Asia. The economic downturn here has been the steepest in the region . The country faces the most sluggish economic recovery .

I started counting sirens out of helplessness and rage; it was a desperate attempt to get a handle on what is really happening on the ground, given competing accounts and confounding official policies.

At the height of the recent surge, the government claimed that around 14 percent of beds in intensive care units in Metro Manila were still available , even as social media feeds were flooded with calls for help and stories of patients being taken to facilities four or five hours away because of long waiting lists.

The health care system is buckling after decades of austerity and privatization . But more than anything, the culprit is the Duterte administration’s penchant for solutions anchored in brute force and draconian control rather than science and concern for the public’s welfare.

Led by a Covid task force filled with military officials , the government’s pandemic response is bannered by a militarized approach to containment, exceedingly strict lockdowns and punitive measures against supposed violators. One man accused of breaking quarantine reportedly died after being forced by police officers to do squat-like exercises as punishment.

In late March, a journalist succumbed to the virus after isolating himself in his car : He had stocked it with food and water, terrified of infecting his family and only too aware of the dire state of health facilities. Around that time, Mr. Duterte vanished from the public eye for a couple of weeks, fueling rumors about his failing health. (#PatayNaBa — Is he dead? — trended on Twitter.)

Still, the government insisted that it had done an “ excellent job ” of containing the virus. “ We did not fall short ,” Mr. Duterte intoned in his trademark drawl after he reappeared.

His spokesman, Harry Roque — who tested positive for the virus in early April and miraculously found an empty bed at the top government hospital — has placed the blame for the recent surge in cases squarely on new virus variants. Not on reopening up too quickly after an earlier lockdown, not on a virtually nonexistent contact-tracing system, not on a botched vaccination deal that may have delayed the beginning of inoculations by months. As of Friday, just 0.3 percent of the population had been fully vaccinated, according to Bloomberg’s vaccine tracker.

Look at Germany, look at France, the government says; rich countries are also suffering. A memo from the presidential communications office was leaked recently: It directed state media to emphasize the global picture “to convey to the public that the Philippines is faring better than many other countries in addressing the pandemic.”

Mr. Duterte, the archetypal strongman, is adamant about controlling the narrative. His government has remained popular despite a war on drugs that has killed thousands of people , the shutdown of the country’s biggest media network and the jailing of a senator in the opposition. Mr. Duterte is supposed to leave office next year, and his daughter Sara leads opinion polls as the choice for the next president.

It was amid the mounting anguish and collective grief that in mid-April, Ana Patricia Non, who goes by Patreng, placed a rickety bamboo cart on the side of Maginhawa Street , in the mostly well-to-do neighborhood of Quezon City near the campus of the University of the Philippines.

Ms. Non, 26, loaded the cart with the simplest of food items: canned goods, rice and pieces of hardy chayote, a local gourd. Taped on a nearby lamppost were two cardboard signs. One said “Maginhawa Community Pantry.” The other stated the pantry’s operating principle: “Give what you can. Take what you need.”

Among the first photos that spread on social media, one showed an older woman holding open her reusable bag while Ms. Non put bundles of leafy vegetables inside. In another , Ms. Non was crouched next to the pantry, which she replenished with greens from the baskets around her.

As word got around, more people — including a few, no doubt, among the millions who have lost their jobs in the pandemic — made a beeline to Maginhawa.

Rising to the challenge, people sent bagfuls of groceries . The owners of nearby stores where supplies were being bought matched those donations. Farmers from tens of miles north sent sacks of sweet potatoes ; fishermen to the south, kilos of tilapia .

The idea behind the pantries was inviting in its simplicity; the exchange, at its heart, instinctive and mutually gratifying. It linked people and communities torn apart by the lockdown.

Most important, it fed those in need: As of late March, some 3.2 million people in Metro Manila, or almost one in four residents, were thought to be going hungry . Ms. Non’s pantry was like the first drop of rain landing on parched earth.

Within two weeks, more than 400 pantries reportedly had sprouted across the country.

In my neighborhood, not far from Maginhawa, a call for donations went out on Twitter. The following morning, there was a plastic table on the side of a quiet road and on it a bag brimming with garlic, onions and tomatoes — the critical starter ingredients for most Filipino dishes. There were signs bearing the name of our area and Ms. Non’s mantra, “Give what you can. Take what you need.”

With no prodding, someone made better-looking signs. People volunteered for grocery runs. Donations continued to pour in, all accounted for in a public spreadsheet. In a group chat, there were conversations about setting up a soup kitchen or community gardens next.

The pantries exposed the granular suffering that the most vulnerable among us experience daily, the quiet scraping-by. They reminded people of the government’s paltry aid . “ Tayo-tayo na lang ,” went a common refrain on social media; we’re on our own. Like the ambulances I track, the pantries are a coping mechanism that also upends any illusion of normalcy.

Which is why the government’s storytellers promptly went to work. The communists were using the pantries to recruit rebels , they warned. The pantries’ slogan was Marx-adjacent.

Among the most virulent critics is Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr. , the garrulous spokesman for the government’s anti-communist task force, which ostensibly was created to end Asia’s longest-running insurgency . In a televised interview on April 20, General Parlade compared Ms. Non with Satan : Both may seem to operate on their own, he said, but in reality they are propped up by a massive, concerted operation — in this case, the vile communist network.

Vice President Leni Robredo , several senators and lawyers’ groups have denounced this red-tagging of pantry organizers and have called for their protection.

The pop-up food banks are an affront to the state’s legitimacy, evidence of the failure of its pandemic response. As a spontaneous expression of a community’s caring, they also expose the violent and self-serving drives that animate this government and subordinate the people’s welfare to political gain.

In July, Congress railroaded an antiterrorism law that critics warned would pave the way for a brazen crackdown on perceived enemies of the state . The nongovernmental organization Karapatan reported more than 50 extrajudicial killings between the law’s passing and the end of 2020; among the victims were community organizers, activists and farmers who had been denounced by state officials.

On March 7, just days after Mr. Duterte ordered security forces to “ kill them all ,” in reference to communist rebels, nine people died in a raid against left-leaning community organizers and activists.

“Give what you can. Take what you need.” How much has the government given, considering what it has taken?

Glenn Diaz ( @glennndiaz ) is the author of the novels “The Quiet Ones” and “Yñiga.”

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Poverty in a Time of Pandemic: A Critique of Philippine Democracy and Some Imperatives Moving Forward

2020, Social Ethics Society (SES) Journal

There is no need to belabor that most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic are the poor. Despite the overused statement "the virus is our real enemy", it cannot be denied that the pandemic is, in many ways, a political and economic issue. The goal of this paper is to present the face of poverty in a time of pandemic. Using the views of Amartya Sen (capability approach) and Robert Chambers (multidimensionality of poverty) this work endeavors to argue that people's multifaceted difficulties and vulnerabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic ultimately indicate the deficiencies of Philippine democracy that are concretely felt in the experiences of certain segments of the populace especially when the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) was imposed in many parts of the country. Building on the foregoing, this work, though not offering any concrete suggestion or blueprint for action, proposes key areas for further critique on the deficiencies of Philippine democracy.

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Philippine Sociological Review

Social Ethics Society Journal

As he moves closer to half of his term as president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Roa Duterte has continually been in friction with the Catholic Church, specifically with certain members of its hierarchy. Mainly identifiable as the dividing line between Duterte's administration and the Church is the issue on human rights particularly the extrajudicial killings (EJK) of suspected users and pushers of illegal drugs. This paper argues that Duterte's attitude and positioning towards the Catholic Church neither strengthen nor advance the Philippine state towards a greater degree of secularization. On the contrary, the Church has become more politically and publicly involved. Consequently, it has remained a key actor or interest group providing an alternative moral discourse to that of the government.

Political Theology

The overarching objective of this paper is to provide a political analysis cum critique of the ‘‘Church of the Poor’’ (COP) discourse of the 1991 Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP II).1 The entire discussion begins with two incontrovertible facts about the Philippines: first, the majority of its people are Catholic (at least nominally) and second, a significant fraction of its population are living below the poverty line. The convocation of PCP II that consequently pronounced the Philippine Church’s preferential option for the poor was discerned by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) in the light of the impoverished condition among so many Filipinos. Has the Philippine hierarchy (CBCP), remained consistent in its thrust 20 years after PCP II? This is what the paper seeks to analyze and discuss.

Asian Horizons

There is a need to broaden the analysis of abuse within the Catholic Church to include any excessive use or application of power, authority, and influence that would detriment, damage and demoralize its members. In this light, the paper offers to go deeper in the understanding of abuse as rooted in ecclesiastical elitism which is a more serious problem than clericalism. Elitism within the Church is concrete in the various forms of privilege and distinctions, rooted in traditionally held theologies, culturally reinforced beliefs, and repeated practices of fame and honour. Because of these, abuse is perpetuated, thus making possible the lack of transparency in terms of financial management and disregard for the rights of people working within the various ministries of the Church. Realistically, power and authority are part of any human system. Precisely why there is a need for the Church to balance its hierarchical authority, power, and influence with accountability in the various structures and aspects of its governance and pastoral activities. The experience of the Philippine Church is the case and context of this study.

Eubios Journal of Asian and International Bioethics

victor john loquias

An environmental ethics grounded on a theory of recognition assumes social justice as incomplete without the due recognition of persons’ relationship with the environment from the standpoint of well-being as an integral part of human flourishing. The state in which this recognition is found missing in intersubjective relations is called reification or the loss of the empathetic engagement of persons with the environment. In Axel Honneth’s social theory, the historical moment in which this reification began can be traced from the emergence of the capitalist economic system. Economic inequalities and environmental crises are simultaneous effects of capitalism symptomatic of the severed empathetic engagement with the environment. The ethical significance of the environment is derived therefore on the first place from its role in the moral integrity of persons. The environment becomes a critical concern for social critique in the advent of this reification. Ethical action towards the environment in a recognitive framework demands reparation of this empathetic engagement in the practical level of human affairs where the environment is always already integrated.

Christopher Ryan Maboloc

This paper addresses an important issue with regard to the critical question of equality during a pandemic – are poor societies more vulnerable to public health emergencies? The available data with respect to the coronavirus crisis reveal that the majority of countries affected by the pandemic belong to the developed economies. This investigation determines the correlation between affluence and the spread of the contagion. It argues that the inequality among nations does not have any significant relation to disease movement, infection, and high mortality rate. However, addressing the problem of urbanization and investing in public health will be crucial in terms of confronting the socio-economic ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Asian Horizon, vol 7(3) 2013

Social Ethics Society Journal of Applied Philosophy

Menelito Mansueto

In this brief philosophical exposé, I will narrate the events as well as my personal and ecospiritual reflections pertaining to the COVID-19 pandemic which began in Wuhan, China sometime in November 2019 and have spread sporadically across countries and continents wreaking havoc medically, politically, and individually, as it claimed more than three hundred thousand lives and had virally infected more than four million of the global population. This phenomenon had led us to confront inevitable eschatological questions: Is this a sign of the end times? Will this efface the vulnerable human race? Will this disrupt the global economy as capitalism had collapsed worldwide? Do these events signal a new political era, perhaps the dawn of socialism and communism, as countries worldwide are led to confront its own deficiencies and inadequacies? Which social and political systems and worldviews are efficient particularly in this age of globalization? What are our chances for human survival? These apocalyptic questions had led me to my reflections on Enrique Dussel’s philosophy of liberation, particularly on his concept of Christian ethics and the moral theology of liberation. In so doing, the paper incorporates a holistic outlook on the pandemic trying to look at the bigger picture in a global scale and considers an all-inclusive interpretation on the pandemic that ranges from the environmental, civic, cultural, political, and socioeconomic concerns. I shall try to sew and patch the pieces together into a much wider, integrated, and comprehensive outlook that includes both the global and the peripheral human experiences.

2020: COVID-19 and Applied Ethics

Noe Santillan

Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, issues and crises arise from the quarantine and/or lockdown policy prompting the United Nations to note the Philippines' "highly militarized response". In this regard, this paper discusses Michel Foucault's Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison citing its "the segmented space", "the surveillance", "the syndic", and "the supplice" (henceforth, 4S), and at the same time, weighs the pros and cons constituted from the concrete condition of the citizens. Given the foregoing discourse, this paper sees the relevance of Foucault's Discipline and Punish, maintaining that forty-five years after its publication it can still expound on the logic and context to place communities under quarantine and/or lockdown. Wherefore, the COVID-19 pandemic gives credence to Michel Foucault's Discipline and Punish visa -vis the philosophical, political, and social discourse that the society is facing.

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Impact of COVID-19 on Poverty in the Philippines

The Impact of COVID-19 on Poverty in the Philippines

The resulting lockdowns due to the virus have created a significant downturn in the job market, thus exacerbating the impact of COVID-19 on poverty in the Philippines. At the beginning of the pandemic, the Philippines’ unemployment rate hovered around 5% , but it has now worsened due to lockdown measures. According to the Philippines Statistics Authority, unemployment rose to 17.6% in April 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, it is a figure that could rise as lockdown measures continue, leading to increased levels of poverty and hunger.

As a result of increased unemployment, poverty has risen, with expectations determining that almost 3 million Filipinos would enter poverty by the end of 2020. The impact of COVID-19 on poverty in the Philippines is temporary but the right measures and lifting lockdown measures as rates and vaccinations roll out could alleviate it .

Infrastructure Projects in the Philippines

While rising poverty rates, increasing hunger levels and stagnating GDP have been common for industrializing countries in this pandemic, the Philippines sees the woes as potential wins, opportunities to flip its eager human capital into a kickstarter for economic growth. Vivencio Dizon, the Presidential Adviser for Flagship Programs, said that “Infrastructure, a neglected aspect of the Philippines represents an opportunity for the country to reclaim some of its lost economic potential.”

Duterte’s government has reviewed almost $80 billion worth of physical infrastructure projects. Many government officials in the Filipino government are confident that these projects will help mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on poverty in the Philippines as many are looking towards the future. One of the projects is the “Build Build Build” program , a project that will involve building infrastructure across the Philippines. A combination of over 20,000 smaller infrastructure projects like the construction of airports, roads, seaports, hospitals, administrative centers and more will demand both highly skilled and low skilled labor to coordinate and enact and oversee construction projects across the rural and urban areas in the country.

Looking Ahead

Despite the impact of COVID-19 on poverty in the Philippines, the country’s infrastructure projects may help provide employment to its citizens. Through the implementation of the “Build Build Build” program, the Philippines may find its way on the road to economic recovery.

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Poverty in the Philippines Essay – 1040 words – Essay On Poverty in the Philippines

Poverty is perhaps the most major burning issue in Philippines. The present scenario of poverty isn’t comfortable here. Corresponding to its temperament, destitution in the Philippines emerged from the fast populace development in the country. Poverty is the burning issue in philippines.

The impacts of it are truly noticeable in nature. Neediness makes numerous Filipinos not seek after their schooling. Others appear to be satisfied with their lives as poor. Numerous guardians can’t bear to send their kids to class in light of the fact that, of the monetary issue. The greater part who are influenced by this issue is the individuals who are living in the mountain regions. Some of them live miles from schools.

This is on the grounds that it is simpler for them to take than to go through finding or discovering a line of work. Destitution and wrongdoing have an exceptionally “private” relationship that has been portrayed by specialists from all fields, from sociologists to business analysts. The UN and the World Bank both divisions have a position high off the wrongdoings on the rundown of obstructions to a nation’s turn of events.

This implies that legislatures attempting to manage destitution regularly likewise need to confront the issue of wrongdoing as they attempt to foster their nation’s economy and society overall, the additional time you spend at school the less vicious you will turn into. Schools don’t simply show you history or math, they show you how to live in the public arena. In any case, the genuine issue is kids in poor metropolitan regions in any event, going to class by any stretch of the imagination? Are they acquiring any friendly abilities while being methodically segregated?

Individuals living alongside contaminated spots are influenced by their ill-advised cleanliness and metropolitan tenants are considerably more influenced by their lacking admission of quality food sources. The absence of admittance to exceptionally nutritious food varieties, particularly in the current setting of rising food costs, is a typical reason for ailing health. Helpless taking care of practices, for example, deficient breastfeeding, offering some unacceptable food varieties, and not guaranteeing that the youngster gets sufficient nutritious food, add to ailing health. This is the motivation behind why numerous youngsters kicked the bucket, it is a regional youngster every year.

Table of Contents

Essay On Poverty In The Philippines

Contrasted and kids whose families had salaries of essentially double the neediness line during their youth, helpless kids finished two less long stretches of tutoring, acquired not exactly half so much, worked 451 fewer hours out of each year, gotten $826 each year more in food stamps as grown-ups, and are almost multiple times as prone to report helpless by and large wellbeing. Helpless guys are more than twice as liable to be captured.

For females, destitution is related with a more than fivefold improvement in the probability of bearing a youngster without any father present before age 21″ (Duncan, 93). Without a doubt, youngsters experiencing childhood in neediness come from single-parent families. The impacts of destitution take an instrument since no one needs to be poor so individuals take the necessary steps to take care of their families whether it be selling drugs or burglarizing individuals will take the necessary steps to remain alive. The Causes and Effects of Poverty

Currently, destitution is perhaps the most shocking issue on the planet. There is a colossal number of individuals that bite the dust each year because of the absence of good guidelines for living like schooling, occupations, food, and medical services. Numerous nations all throughout the planet have an assortment of individuals who need assistance to live in troublesome conditions. Be that as it may, very few individuals from created nations help these sorts of individuals who are out of luck. Destitution has an assortment of causes, and it additionally has many adverse consequences.

Poverty in the Philippines Essay

A few factors that brought about the drop in neediness are the extension of occupations outside the farming area, government moves and getting qualified Filipinos to help through the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program. This specific program which is an administration cash-present venture has diminished neediness by 25%.

 A large portion of the Philippines is hit with huge tropical storms and still have a furnished clash. These situations are a genuine battle to the regular specialist who, even following a monotonous day, actually returns home poor. Because of these elements, numerous residents wind up leaving behind ranch work and go get work in assembling centres in the metropolitan spaces of the country. These positions outside the horticultural vault have represented 66% of the advancement in lessening neediness in the Philippines.

One of the critical procedures to help cut down neediness in the Philippines is giving conception prevention to poor people. In an extreme move for the intensely populated Catholic country, the President made promptly accessible anti-conception medication to almost 6 million ladies who can’t bear the cost of it.

Giving contraception is a useful asset for families who currently have full command over family arranging. The expectation is by giving the ladies and nuclear families more control, they will have fewer youngsters. This, thus, will imply that families can give all the more mindfully. This new approach will help the public authority arrive at its objective of lessening destitution by 13% by 2022.

The current Filipino populace is at 104 million and keeps on increasing at a disturbing pace of 1.7 % every year. This new law will empower families to control the number of kids they need. It will likewise ideally bring down the populace rate to 1.4 per cent every year once the government completely execute the law.

Despite the fact that the Philippines have buckled down in the past to lessen their neediness and stay aware of their neighbours China, Vietnam and Indonesia, they actually have far to go. Marak K. Warwick of The World Bank accepts that with a strong establishment there is motivation to be hopeful that the Philippines can accomplish their objective.

The objective for the Philippine government is to make more positions, further develop efficiency, put resources into wellbeing and sustenance while zeroing in on diminishing neediness. On the off chance that the public authority can execute its arrangements effectively, it is fit for decreasing destitution in the Philippines by 13 to 15 per cent by 2022.

Frequently Asked Questions?

What is Poverty?

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Home / Essay Samples / Government / Philippine Government / Discussion Of Who Is To Blame With Poverty: Poor People Or The Philippine Government

Discussion Of Who Is To Blame With Poverty: Poor People Or The Philippine Government

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