THE COUNTRY’S poverty incidence fell to a record-low 9.7 percent in 2025, lifting 6.5 million Filipinos out of poverty, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
This marked the first time the poverty incidence rate fell to single digits, putting the government three years ahead of its target under the Philippine Development Plan.
The latest figure, according to state statisticians, meant 11 million Filipinos were living below the poverty threshold in 2025, down from 17.5 million in 2023.
The decline came as nominal incomes increased by about 22 percent between 2023 and 2025, well above the cumulative inflation rate of 5 percent over the same period.
“For the first time, fewer than one in ten Filipinos is living below the poverty line,” Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said.
“Reaching this milestone ahead of schedule demonstrates that expanding economic opportunities, complemented by effective social protection, can make a meaningful difference in people’s lives,” he added. (Nyah Genelle C. De Leon © Philippine Daily Inquirer)
