MANILA, July 6, 2011—Prospects for the Philippine economy remain favorable in 2011 as investments, private consumption and the services sector are expected to strengthen. The challenge now is sustaining the momentum of reform for achieving inclusive or broad-based growth that benefits the poor.

Read the whole post here.

Based on SWS data, the latest hunger rate is the lowest since June 2007, when the recorded figure was at 14.7 percent.

In its survey, SWS asked 1,200 respondents nationwide: “In the last 3 months, did it happen even once that your family experienced hunger and not have anything to eat?”

Those who answered in the affirmative were further asked: “Did it happen ‘only once,’ ‘a few times,’ ‘often’ or ‘always?’”

SWS classified experiencing hunger only once or a few times as “moderate hunger,” while going hungry often or always was categorized as “severe hunger.”

Nationwide, those who experienced moderate hunger decreased from 15.7 percent (3.2 million families) in March to 13.1 percent (2.6 million families) in June.

Those who experienced severe hunger fell from 4.7 percent (950,000 families) in March to 2 percent (403,000 families) in June.

By geographical area, overall hunger rates decreased in Luzon outside Metro Manila and Metro Manila, but rose in the Visayas and Mindanao.

Read more here. Also, please consider a donation to the PAS soup kitchen.

Click here to visit the album.

Usually emotionally agitated by the sight of families in squatter areas having numerous children, these well-intentioned “social engineers” propose to limit the number per children per fertile woman to two. That’s the typical knee-jerk reaction that has not been subjected to a more thorough analysis.

Villegas also correctly identifies the causes of poverty as (including) misguided economic policies and widespread corruption in the public and private sector.  I highly recommend his article entitled, “The Folly of Stopping at Two.”

MANILA, Philippines — Concerned government agencies are working double time to rescue 2.4 million children from hard labor and instead send them to school, Malacañang announced Wednesday.

Read the whole story here.

MANILA — Thousands of people in the Philippines fled their homes as a volcano erupted on Monday, sending a spectacular column of ash high into the sky, residents said.

The eruption of Bulusan, a 1,559-metre (5,115-foot) volcano, turned mid-morning into night for about 20 minutes across largely farming areas around its slopes, regional army spokesman Major Harold Cabunoc told AFP.

“There was a major ashfall. There was zero visibility,” Cabunoc said.

Read the whole story here.

This news comes not long after transportation officials announced rate hikes for the LRT light rail system.   The Philippine economy is growing slowly but along with that overall growth comes inflation which means higher prices accompany any marginal wage increases achieved in recent years.

Regulators yesterday said they had approved a provisional P1 increase in jeepney fares — which would bring the minimum rate for Metro Manila commuters to P8 — while water concessionares said they would this month implement the latest phase of previously approved adjustments.

Read more here.

LEGAZPI CITY, Albay, Philippines —The United Nations World Food Programme (UN-WFP) on Tuesday sent 55,000 kilos of high energy biscuits worth P5 million to families in Albay who were affected by heavy rains for more than three weeks now.

Stephen Anderson, WFP country director, said this would augment ongoing relief operations in Bicol.

Read the whole story here.

In the Philippines, we managed the thrift store that my brother Steve and his wife Katy started while they were working for PAS earlier this year. The thrift store benefits the working poor by giving them quality clothing and children’s books for a fraction of what they’d pay elsewhere. It also helps us cover overhead expenses like utilities so that donations can go straight to feeding and caring for the poor. My wife and I were fortunate enough to be able to serve at our mobile soup kitchen during our visit. (I’ll post some pictures soon.)

I’m excited to announce that Philippine Aid Society will be expanding our partnership with the outreach ministry of the University of Pampanga in San Fernando. With their administrative structure and volunteer base, we will be able to help fund many new programs to help the poor and expand our service area. Thanks to all our donors for making this possible!