Govt fails to cut poverty despite high growth
CHERYL M. ARCIBAL, GMANews.TV
05/20/2009 | 07:10 PM
MANILA, Philippines - President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo may boast of sustained economic growth since she assumed office nearly a decade ago but she failed her most important challenge: lifting hungry and jobless Filipinos out of poverty.
President Arroyo, the country’s second-longest serving president since Ferdinand Marcos, “clearly failed" her mandate of ensuring that more Filipinos live decent lives, economist Solita Collas-Monsod of the University of the Philippines (UP) said.
“Although the GDP (gross domestic product) improved at a faster pace but this did not get reflected on incomes. It seems that the increase in income went to everybody else but the poor," said Monsod during the launch of the Philippine Human Development Report (PHDR) 2008/2009.
Since 1997, the Philippines’ poverty incidence has been “rising," which Monsod considered a “puzzle."
The country has been registering decent growth, averaging five percent, starting in 1990s, added Monsod, a former socioeconomic planning secretary.
In 2007, the Philippine economy expanded by 7.2 percent, which is the highest in the region at that time and the country’s highest in three decades.
But former Budget Secretary Emilia Boncodin said the public expected too much from Mrs. Arroyo since she was catapulted to the presidency through a popular revolt that toppled president Joseph Estrada.
“We had a lot more expectations from her after the failed presidency of Mr. Estrada. But in fairness to her, many initiatives and reforms were started," said Boncodin, who teaches public administration at the University of the Philippines.
Monsod also warned that the financial crisis’ most adverse impact is that the Philippines may be unable to meet the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals, which seek to halve poverty, among eight others.
“The amount of resources that the government will have is affected. There is much greater need, more resources and more financing to fund programs of the government. There's definitely no way for 10 million people to be out of poverty by 2015," said Monsod.
The economic crisis will force poor Filipinos to cut back on their health and education spending.
and that the government's conditional cash transfer program should be supported.
Moreover, since the poor would no longer be opting for a college education, the government should just drop the plan to add two more years in college, Monsod said.
Monsod added that the government's meager resources should be focused on improving the basic education system of the Philippines.
Next: Mindanao provinces continue to be the poorest areas in RP
President Arroyo, the country’s second-longest serving president since Ferdinand Marcos, “clearly failed" her mandate of ensuring that more Filipinos live decent lives, economist Solita Collas-Monsod of the University of the Philippines (UP) said.
“Although the GDP (gross domestic product) improved at a faster pace but this did not get reflected on incomes. It seems that the increase in income went to everybody else but the poor," said Monsod during the launch of the Philippine Human Development Report (PHDR) 2008/2009.
Since 1997, the Philippines’ poverty incidence has been “rising," which Monsod considered a “puzzle."
The country has been registering decent growth, averaging five percent, starting in 1990s, added Monsod, a former socioeconomic planning secretary.
In 2007, the Philippine economy expanded by 7.2 percent, which is the highest in the region at that time and the country’s highest in three decades.
But former Budget Secretary Emilia Boncodin said the public expected too much from Mrs. Arroyo since she was catapulted to the presidency through a popular revolt that toppled president Joseph Estrada.
“We had a lot more expectations from her after the failed presidency of Mr. Estrada. But in fairness to her, many initiatives and reforms were started," said Boncodin, who teaches public administration at the University of the Philippines.
Monsod also warned that the financial crisis’ most adverse impact is that the Philippines may be unable to meet the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals, which seek to halve poverty, among eight others.
“The amount of resources that the government will have is affected. There is much greater need, more resources and more financing to fund programs of the government. There's definitely no way for 10 million people to be out of poverty by 2015," said Monsod.
The economic crisis will force poor Filipinos to cut back on their health and education spending.
and that the government's conditional cash transfer program should be supported.
Moreover, since the poor would no longer be opting for a college education, the government should just drop the plan to add two more years in college, Monsod said.
Monsod added that the government's meager resources should be focused on improving the basic education system of the Philippines.
Next: Mindanao provinces continue to be the poorest areas in RP
