Almost half of Filipino families feel poor, according to the recent survey released by the Social Weather Stations (SWS).
Based on their March poll, 46 percent or 12.9 million families have referred to themselves as poor or mahirap, compared to the 47 percent or about 13 million recorded in December 2023.
Meanwhile, 30 percent of families rated themselves as borderline poor, while 23 percent said they were not.
Self-rated poverty was highest in the Visayas at 64 percent, followed by Mindanao at 56 percent, Luzon areas outside the capital region at 38 percent, and Metro Manila at 33 percent.
On the other hand, 33 percent families rate themselves as "food-poor" based on the food that they ate.
SWS noted that self-rated food poverty rose in Visayas and Metro Manila.
"As of March 2024, the percentage of Self-Rated Food-Poor families was highest in the Visayas at 46 percent, followed by Mindanao at 44%, Metro Manila at 28 percent, and Balance Luzon at 24 percent," SWS said.
SWS interviewed 1,500 adults on March 21-25 for the poll, which had an error margin of ±2.5 points.
