Philippines: ‘Substantial ayuda needed to cushion severe poverty’

• Aug 23, 2021

MANILA, Philippines — The government should provide substantial cash assistance to poor Filipino families as the meager P1,000 ayuda will never be enough to mitigate the worsening poverty situation in the country amid the pandemic, according to an advocacy group.

Research and advocacy group IBON Foundation renewed its call for the government to provide much needed ayuda to the lowest income families even as restrictions have been eased.

IBON said the ayuda would cushion the impact of worsening poverty, especially as jobs and incomes have yet to recover amid repeated and ineffective lockdowns.

“Coupled with correct health and stimulus measures, emergency assistance can at least alleviate the economic distress of Filipinos, maintain some level of demand and consumption, and put the economy on the road to recovery,” IBON said.

“Yet the government has increasingly made this less and less of a priority, leaving many vulnerable Filipinos to get by on their own,” it said.

During the third round of lockdown a few weeks ago, the government released P1,000 per person or P4,000 maximum per family. Restrictions were eased beginning Aug. 21, but some individuals have yet to receive their ayuda.

IBON believes this kind of assistance is inadequate as it supports calls for at least a one-time P10,000 ayuda to be given to the poorest 18 million families.

The group said this is the kind of strong fiscal stimulus that would spur aggregate demand, which has long been subdued due to the pandemic.

Lawmakers are pushing for a Bayanihan 3 to aid in economic recovery.

But the economic team of the Duterte administration maintained that Bayanihan 3 or any stimulus package for that matter has yet to become a priority as funding sources are still being looked into.

“The country already had a weak economy and jobs crisis coming into the pandemic. But these have been made worse by the government’s refusal to take on bolder and effective measures to boost economic activity and protect Filipinos’ health, livelihoods and incomes,” IBON said.

“Substantial emergency aid, for instance, could have cushioned the blow on jobs and income losses and helped many vulnerable households recover and cope,” it said.

Amid a weak economic situation due to labor woes and high commodity prices, IBON said more Filipinos will surely fall deeper into poverty.

IBON estimates that the poorest 70 percent of families or about 17.3 million people lost an average of P13,000 to P32,000 in the past 17 months of the pandemic.

The number of households without any savings also rose to 17.8 million, which means that seven in 10 are completely dependent on their daily earnings or debt.

“Many areas in the country have already undergone several hundreds of days of multiple harsh lockdowns and are suffering from the ill effects of these. Yet the Duterte administration chooses to ignore worsening poverty and scrimp on much-needed cash assistance,” IBON said.

“To mitigate poverty, the government needs to ensure substantial ayuda and support to help Filipinos in need. Real and substantial spending on the people’s immediate needs as well as that of the production sectors and small businesses is urgent to recover from the harsh impact of the pandemic crisis and lockdowns on livelihoods and incomes,” it said.

Source: https://www.philstar.com/business/2021/08/23/2121877/substantial-ayuda-needed-cushion-severe-poverty