- Poverty in the Philippines goes beyond how much a person earns, with 12.8% of Filipinos classified as multidimensionally poor in 2024, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
- The newly released Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) looks at whether people have access to the basic conditions needed for a decent quality of life, including education, employment, health and nutrition, housing, and water and sanitation.
- Education emerged as the most common area of deprivation, particularly among adults aged 19 and above who had not completed high school. Housing, water, and sanitation were also significant challenges.
Poverty in the Philippines goes beyond how much a person earns, with 12.8% of Filipinos classified as multidimensionally poor in 2024, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
The newly released Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) looks at whether people have access to the basic conditions needed for a decent quality of life, including education, employment, health and nutrition, housing, and water and sanitation.
Education emerged as the most common area of deprivation, particularly among adults aged 19 and above who had not completed high school. Housing, water, and sanitation were also significant challenges.
This gives a different picture from the country's traditional poverty statistics, which primarily measure whether a family's income falls below a set poverty threshold.
The MPI is meant to complement, not replace, that measure by showing what people may be lacking even beyond their income. This can help policymakers identify which communities need interventions in areas such as education, housing, healthcare, and basic services.
The data comes shortly after the PSA reported that income-based poverty incidence fell to a record-low 9.7% in 2025.
The difference between the two measures is observed as a household may no longer be classified as income-poor but could still struggle with inadequate housing, limited access to clean water, or gaps in education.