ROXAS CITY, Capiz (PIA) – Poverty incidence among families in the province of Capiz remains at group six, classified as least poor in Western Visayas.
Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) OIC Senior Statistical Specialist Rosiebelle Beluso, during the data dissemination forum, said that as of 2023, Capiz is one of the provinces in Western Visayas that has the lowest poverty incidence at 9.8 percent equating to around 21,390 families.
“Compared to other provinces in Region 6, it shows that Capiz has one of the lowest poverty incidences in Western Visayas,” Beluso noted.
According to PSA, the poverty threshold is the minimum income needed for a family or individual to meet the basic needs of food and non-food requirements.
In the province as of 2023, the average poverty threshold per family per month rose from P11,142.00 to P13,850.00.
Meanwhile, Provincial Planning and Development Coordinator Wilar de los Santos stated that Capiz is the only province in Western Visayas with an increasing trend in poverty incidence due to calamities such as the COVID-19 pandemic, typhoons, major flooding, rodent infestation, spread of African Swine Fever (ASF) and occurrence of red tide.
During the forum, he also said that the increase in income cannot surpass the poverty threshold and noted that the increase in the prices of food may be one of the reasons for the ongoing rise of the poverty threshold.
De los Santos further said that to address these concerns, the Capiz provincial government has major projects and programs to decrease the poverty incidence.
He emphasized that they have been implementing the right for adequate food, crop insurance, and technical assistance for farmers, distributing sustainable livelihood projects, red tide monitoring, job fairs through the Public Employment Service Office and Department of Labor and Employment, and the assistance from the Task Force Pagdumdum. (AGP/PLF/PIA Capiz)
