More than one-third of the Philippines’ 50 million citizens living in rural areas are considered poor. Most rural citizens depend on agriculture as the primary or only source of income for their families. These families end up further in poverty as agricultural productivity declines, unsustainable practices continue and economic growth lags. Here is some information about poverty among farmers in the Philippines including what some are doing to eliminate it.
The Impact of COVID-19 on Farmers in the Philippines
COVID-19 exacerbated poverty in the farming community by devastating the Philippean economy. Intense quarantine restrictions and natural disasters in 2020 led to an increase in poverty. The inability to transport goods and items has disrupted the farming sector. It continues to stall the stabilization of the economy. Farmers in rural areas have remained among the poorest group in the Philippines since 2006.
The ACDI/VOCA
The ACDI has attempted to combat the poverty that farmers in the Philippines feel through its Cooperative Development Program. The ADCI/VOCA is a Washington, D.C.-based organization focusing on economic development and growth to raise living standards in poverty-stricken countries. Founded in 1993, the global organization has developed multiple programs in the Philippines to aid the farming community.
Philippine Coffee Advancement and Farm Enterprise
Some of ACDI/VOCA’s past initiatives include the Philippine Coffee Advancement and Farm Enterprise (PhilCAFE), which emphasized supporting farmers in the coffee sector. PhilCAFE aimed to increase the production and exports of coffee by promoting the coffee industry, facilitating the establishment of good agricultural practices, improving technologies and supporting lending.
The initiative has helped 349 individuals access agricultural financing and has also formed partnerships with 50 public-private partnerships as of November 2020.
The organization also implemented the Mindanao Productivity in Agricultural Commerce and Trade (MinPACT) Project. The project helped increase the incomes of small farmers in the cocoa, coconut and coffee farming industries of Southern and Western Mindanao, an area with extreme poverty rates in the Philippines.
The project worked to reduce poverty and food insecurity in Mindanao by supporting smaller farmers. The approach included plans to increase production, improve productivity, support improved agricultural practices, provide training to reduce harvest loss, provide grants to improve systems and equipment and promote sustainability in the farming industry.
The initiative assisted 6,360 farmers and trained them in farming planning, improved infrastructure for production in 26 enterprises and gave access to traditional cash loans to 1,248 farmers.
CDP in the Philippines
ACDI’s Cooperative Development Program (CDP) works in multiple countries to support cooperatives and their members by promoting economic growth and bolstering civil society. The CDP launched in the Philippines in September of 2022. Agreements with more than 40 local cooperatives made this possible.
These cooperatives are members of the agricultural sector in areas such as rice, coconut, coffee, cacao and dairy production. The CDP in the Philippines will implement a five-year plan to provide the assistance the agriculture industry needs. The multimillion-dollar effort will “foster broad-based economic growth, raise living standards, and help build dynamic agricultural value chains.”
CDP Philippines hopes to see the positive effects of investing in the next five years through its efforts to “promote inclusion, integration, and innovation to create a more vibrant and sustainable farming community.”
– Brooklynn Rich
Photo: Wikipedia Commons
FAQs
More than one-third of the Philippines' 50 million citizens living in rural areas are considered poor. Most rural citizens depend on agriculture as the primary or only source of income for their families.
What is the poverty incidence among farmers in the Philippines? ›
Preliminary figures for 2021 suggest that the poverty incidence among farmers in the Philippines was at 30 percent, a significant decrease from the 2015 values. Across the country, palay farms in CALABARZON had the highest average daily wage rate in 2019.
What is the biggest problem that Filipino farmers face when it comes to the country's agricultural status? ›
Poverty is one issue, but income inequality is another. Farmers, who mostly belong to the bottom 50% earners in the country, only share 14% of the national income. [4] Many of these farmers are among the nearly 20 million Filipinos living in extreme poverty.
Why poverty is the main problem in the Philippines? ›
Causes of poverty
Poverty in the Philippines has been linked to bad governance, corruption, and a political system dominated by political dynasties. The country's poorest provinces are ruled by political dynasties. Natural disasters have exacerbated poverty in the Philippines.
Do farmers get paid enough in the Philippines? ›
Simply put, a Filipino farmer is constrained not only by his productivity, but also by the size of the land that he tills and the lack of post-harvest facilities. This means, despite all these interventions (hybrid seeds, etc), a farmer still does not earn enough to support his family because of farm size constraints.
Why are the farmers in the Philippines poor? ›
High agricultural costs, rising food prices, and an over-reliance on imports are pushing farmers toward poverty and leaving people hungry in the Philippines.
Why are farmers still the poorest among the poor in the Philippines? ›
As stressed by the FFTC-AP “poverty among agricultural workers is mainly attributed to the lack of enough attention to the agricultural sector—one of the greatest blunders any developing country such as the Philippines could do.”
What is the main problem of farmers in the Philippines? ›
5 answersThe current problems in agricultural farming in the Philippines include issues with irrigation systems, labor shortage, poverty levels, post-harvest losses, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Filipino farmers in Nueva Ecija face challenges with irrigation systems due to the lack of resources and control.
What are the issues faced by todays farmers in the Philippines? ›
Challenges identified were lack of important provisions that will guarantee food security and reduce poverty in the countryside, lack of programs that will link agriculture with the industry, and insufficient activities aimed to vigorously transfer advanced production, post- harvest, and processing technologies to the ...
What is the biggest problem in agriculture in the Philippines? ›
4 answersThe main challenges facing agriculture in the Philippines include the shift from conventional farming to organic farming, vulnerability to strong typhoons and other calamities, pests and insects destroying crops, competition from imported rice, insufficient rice production, and the threats of climate change.
“Natural” causes of poverty include agriculture cycles, droughts, flooding, natural disasters and warfare. These phenomenons contribute to hunger and especially effect farmers. Limited resources and infrastructure to respond to such crises in developing countries also perpetuate inequality.
What is the richest city in Philippines? ›
MANILA, Philippines – For the third straight year, Quezon City emerged as the wealthiest city in the country, according to the 2022 Commission on Audit (COA) Annual Financial Report. COA's Annual Financial Report in 2022 covered 81 provinces, 147 cities, and 1,487 municipalities.
Is Philippines one of the poorest country in Asia? ›
The Philippines possesses diverse natural resources and is globally recognized for its significant level of biodiversity. In 2021, the country's GDP per adult came in at $5,580, categorizing it as one of the poorest Asian countries.
What is the average income of farmers in the Philippines? ›
Prosperity is thus non-existent in almost all agriculture households in the Philippines, with the PSA in its Family Income and Expenditure Survey showing a typical Filipino farmer earning an average of only P100,000 per year.
Why is Philippine agriculture dying? ›
In the case of the Philippines, with the elimination of quotas as decreed by the WTO and the so-called Minimum Access Volumes (MAV's) providing little protection, dumping of massively subsidized products triggered crises in the corn, pig, poultry, and vegetable sectors, leading to the bankruptcy of large numbers of ...
Do farmers pay taxes in Philippines? ›
Yes. Pursuant to Section 236 of the Tax Code, as amended, agricultural producers are required to be registered with BIR and shall file quarterly and annual income tax returns and pay their income tax due.
What percentage of farmers are in poverty? ›
About 30% of farmworker families live below the poverty line, according to the most recent National Agricultural Workers Survey (NAWS). That's almost double the poverty rate of the U.S. as a whole (15.9% in 2012). Average and median farmworker household incomes ranged from $20,000 to $24,999.
What is the poverty rate for farmers? ›
Rates of poverty are higher in rural areas compared to urban areas. According to the United States Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service, in 2019 15.4% of people living in rural areas had an income below the federal poverty line, while those living in urban areas had a poverty rate of only 11.9%.
Where is the highest incidence of poverty in the Philippines? ›
DAVAO CITY – The National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) has identified the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) as the area with the highest poverty incidence in Mindanao.
What is the most common problem of farmers in the Philippines? ›
The issues facing Filipino farmers include limited farm size, poor knowledge in production and marketing, difficulties accessing finance, and lack of support services, infrastructure, and access to markets.
