The new Social Weather Stations’ (SWS) study that showed a dip in the hunger level of beneficiaries of the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) Walang Gutom Program (WGP) is a ‘clear sign’ that the agency is effectively addressing the issue of hunger in the country, experts emphasized on Friday (May 30).
“Makikita po natin na pagdating sa layunin ng programa na pababain ang kagutuman, matagumpay ang programa,” Professor Roehlano Briones, a senior researcher at the Philippine Institute of Development Studies (PIDS), said at a press conference co-organized by the DSWD, SWS, and Globe Telecom.
Commissioned by the DSWD and Globe, the SWS survey showed that among WGP program beneficiaries, the share of households experiencing ‘moderate’ hunger dropped by 4.1 percentage points —from 48.7 percent in October 2024 to 44.6 percent in December.
Prof. Briones pointed out that contrasting the 4.1 percent drop to the recorded 6.1 percent hunger rise among non-beneficiaries completes the idea that the improved conditions of WGP beneficiaries can be directly tied to the anti-hunger program.
“So, pwede nating sabihin na ang programa na ito at hindi ibang factor ang nag-cause nito kasi hinambing natin sila sa mga grupo ng mga non-beneficiaries and they did much better. Yung mga naging bahagi ng program versus mga hindi kasama sa program,” Prof. Briones said.
The SWS backed Prof. Briones’ points, citing data that speak volume on the experience of over 300,000 household beneficiaries of the WGP and the difference the program is making in their lives.
“Ito po ay isang self-reported experience ng hunger na nagsasabi na nakaranas ng pagkagutom o hindi. So, of course, kailangan pagkatiwalaan natin yung mga sagot ng respondents natin, kasi experiential ‘to eh. So, kung nakaranas sila ng pagkagutom o hindi, sila na po yung mga masasabi nating eksperto,” SWS Vice President Jay Sandoval said in the presscon held in Tondo, City of Manila.
The survey was held in two-waves last October 7-18 and December 1-10, 2024 covering a total of 3,991 respondents.
“Para sa survey na ginawa sa DSWD, pre-listed po ito. Mula ito sa listahan [ng mga beneficiaries ng WGP] at yung mga respondents natin, pinuntahan naming isa-isa sa bahay. Hinanap namin sila sa unang pagkakataon, pati do’n sa mga pangalawang pagkakataon, pinuntahan ulit namin sila,” Sandoval of SWS explained.
The study also noted that significant regional improvements were seen in areas with high vulnerability.
In the BARMM-Plus region, which includes the provinces of Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Maguindanao del Norte, Maguindanao del Sur, Lanao del Sur, and Zamboanga Sibugay, hunger among beneficiaries dropped by 7.3 points.
Toward the Central-South cluster, composed of Negros Oriental, Negros Occidental, Cotabato City, Zamboanga del Norte, and Surigao del Norte, the drop was at 5.7 points.
A similar trend was observed in severe hunger, where beneficiary-households in BARMM-Plus saw a marked decrease of 8.1 percentage points, the highest across all clusters.
Sandoval emphasized that the survey suggests that WGP is making yields in addressing hunger in the Philippines despite being only launched recently, prompting the need to sustain its scaling up to reach more Filipinos in need of the program’s benefits.
Launched in 2023, and institutionalized in 2024 by the virtue of Executive Order (EO) No. 44, the WGP is the flagship anti-hunger program of the Philippine government, aligned with the sharp focus of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. in addressing food insecurity in the Philippines.
It aims to feed a total of 750,000 food-poor Filipino households nationwide by 2027. (LSJ)