El Ni O Or El Peso Crisis Poverty And Income Distribution In The Philippines

October 2000 In terms of its impact on poverty, the recent economic crisis in the Philippines was more of an El Niño phenomenon than a financial crisis. Using household survey data for 1998, Datt and Hoogeveen assess the distributional impact of the recent economic crisis in the Philippines. The results suggest that the impact of the crisis was modest, leading to a 5 percent reduction in average living standards and a 9 percent increase in the incidence of poverty--with larger increases indicated for the depth and severity of poverty. The greater shock came from El Niño rather than through the labor market. The labor market shock was progressive (reducing inequality) while the El Niño shock was regressive (increasing inequality). Not all households were equally vulnerable to the crisis-induced shocks. Household and community characteristics affected the impact of the shocks. Ownership of land made households more susceptible to the El Niño shocks; higher levels of education made households more vulnerable to wage and employment shocks. The impact of the crisis was greater in more commercially developed communities. Occupational diversity within a household helped mitigate the adverse impact. There is some evidence of consumption smoothing by the households affected by the crisis, but the poor were less able to protect their consumption, which is a matter of policy concern. This paper--a product of the Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Sector Unit, East Asia and Pacific Region--is part of a larger effort in the region to better understand the social impact of the crisis.

In terms of its impact on poverty, the recent economic crisis in the Philippines was more of an El Nintilde;o phenomenon than a financial crisis. Using household survey data for 1998, Datt and Hoogeveen assess the distributional impact of the recent economic crisis in the Philippines. The results suggest that the impact of the crisis was modest, leading to a 5 percent reduction in average living standards and a 9 percent increase in the incidence of poverty-with larger increases indicated for the depth and severity of poverty.The greater shock came from El Nintilde;o rather than through the labor market. The labor market shock was progressive (reducing inequality) while the El Nintilde;o shock was regressive (increasing inequality).Not all households were equally vulnerable to the crisis - induced shocks. Household and community characteristics affected the impact of the shocks. Ownership of land made households more susceptible to the El Nintilde;o shocks; higher levels of education made households more vulnerable to wage and employment shocks.The impact of the crisis was greater in more commercially developed communities. Occupational diversity within a household helped mitigate the adverse impact.There is some evidence of consumption smoothing by the households affected by the crisis, but the poor were less able to protect their consumption, which is a matter of policy concern.This paper - a product of the Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Sector Unit, East Asia and Pacific Region - is part of a larger effort in the region to better understand the social impact of the crisis.

In terms of its impact on poverty, the recent economic crisis in the Philippines was more of an El Niño phenomenon than a financial crisis.

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This book examines all major facets of the Philippine economy and development policy. Contributors to this volume look both to the past and to the future, and their approaches are variously descriptive, analytical, interpretive, and comparative. The book assesses trends since the 1980s, identifies major policy issues, and provides a balance sheet of achievements and deficiencies over the past decade and beyond. It highlights future challenges that need to be addressed if the country is to embark on a sustainable, durable, and equitable growth trajectory. The book also offers lessons from the country's development experience which may be relevant for many countries at the present time. The volume has particular relevance for the country's policymakers, academics and the business community, and will also appeal to a broader international audience.

Anecdotal evidence permeates accounts on the impact of the global economic crisis on Philippine poverty. This study systematically assesses the evidence and recent data. It adopts a somewhat eclectic approach as applying regression and decomposition techniques to trace the impact of the global economic crisis on gross domestic product and its major components, constructing panel data from nationally representative household surveys to trace the changes in household welfare during the crisis, and combining national income accounts and household survey data to simulate the differential effects of the crisis across population groups and social divides. Empirical findings suggest that although the Philippine economy did not slide to recession during the crisis, its impact on the economy and poverty across population groups was nonetheless severe---and may linger for many years to come.

Proposing international trade as a path for achieving the SDGs, this curated collection envisions a more equitable and sustainable world, one where the benefits of international trade are fairly distributed, where economic crises are met with resilience and innovation and where the SDGs are not just aspirations but lived realities.