Fewer hungry Filipino families in Q1 of 2017—SWS

Fewer Filipino families experienced hunger in the first quarter of 2017, according to a recent survey by Social Weather Stations (SWS).

The poll, conducted from March 25 to 28, showed that 11.9 percent or about 2.7 million households reported to have experienced hunger in the first three months of the year.

BACKSTORY: More Filipinos went hungry in last quarter of 2016

The latest figure was lower than the 13.9 percent recorded in December 2016 and the 13.7 percent lodged in the same period last year.

SWS said both “moderate hunger” and “severe hunger” declined to 9.7 percent and 2.2 percent, respectively. The pollster defines moderate hunger as those who experienced hunger “only once” or “a few times” in the last three months, and severe hunger as those who experienced hunger “often” or “always” in the last three months.

Hunger rate also dropped in Metro Manila (down 1 point to 12 percent) , Balance Luzon (down 3.7 points to 11.3 percent) and the Visayas (down 3 points to 13.7 percent), but not in Mindanao, where it increased by 1.7 to 11.7 percent.

SWS noted that the quarterly hunger rate also dropped by 3.9 points to 17.1 percent among the self-rated poor, while it declined by 4.2 points to 20.7 percent among the self-rated food-poor.

The survey, conducted through face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adult respondents, had an error margin of ±3 points for national percentages. It was first published in BusinessWorld. IDL