Results of the survey, which were first published in BusinessWorld, revealed that the number of Filipino families who claimed that they had nothing to eat at least once in the last three months jumped to 23.8 percent (an estimated 4.8 million families) from the 22.5 percent (4.5 million families) recorded in December.
The polling firm said that the latest figure surpassed the 23.7 percent recorded in December 2008.
It added that the incidence of hunger has been over 20 percent in the past three quarters.
The latest survey follows SWS’ poll results on self-rated poverty, which were released last week and wherein 55 percent of respondents (an estimated 11.1 million families) claimed to be poor.
The poll on hunger defines people experiencing “moderate” hunger as those who had nothing to eat only “only once” or “a few times” in the last three months, while those who “often” or “always” had nothing to eat during that period are considered people who experienced “severe” hunger.
The survey agency said that the latest figure on “moderate” hunger was 18 percent (an estimated 3.7 million families), or 0.3-point higher than the 17.7 percent (3.6 million families) recorded in December.
The latest figure on “severe” hunger, meanwhile, increased by 1.1 points to a near record-high of 5.8 percent (1.2 million families), compared to the 4.7 percent (955,000 families) registered in December.
“Severe hunger in March this year was just below the peak of 6.0 percent recorded in March 2001,” SWS said.
It added that among the self-rated poor, severe hunger increased from 8.0 percent in December to 9.2 percent in March.
Among poor/borderline families, the rating on hunger plunged from 2.1 percent in December to 1.7 percent in March.
The polling firm said that moderate hunger among self-rated poor families dropped from 25.6 percent in December to 23.2 percent in March.
It added that among not-poor/borderline families, the figure went up from 11.2 percent in December to 11.8 percent in March.
According to SWS, incidence of hunger increased in all geographical areas except in the Visayas, where it dropped 14.7 points to 10.3 percent (399,500 families), from the previously recorded 25 percent (957,000 families).
Overall hunger increased by seven points to 26.7 percent (1.3 million families) in Mindanao, five points to 28.0 percent (2.5 million families) in Balance of Luzon (Luzon without Metro Manila)—just 0.3 point shy of September 2011’s record high—and 2.3 points to 24.3 percent (691,000 families)
in Metro Manila.
The SWS survey, which was conducted from March 10 to 13, used face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults in Metro Manila, Balance of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao and had margins of error of plus or minus 3 percent for national percentages and plus or minus 6 percent for area percentages.
The polling firm said that the survey was non-commissioned and conducted on its own initiative.
Palace’s response
Also on Tuesday, Palace deputy spokesman Abigail Valte confirmed the poll’s findings, saying that incidence of hunger had risen in calamity-stricken areas in Central Luzon and Mindanao.
According to her, the Department of Social Welfare and Development is stepping up its supplementary feeding programs and expanding its Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program.
With a report from Jaime R. Pilapil
Source : ManilaTimes, PHOTO BY MIKE DE JUAN