President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. (left), House Speaker Martin Romualdez (Speaker’s office)

House Speaker Martin Romualdez has reiterated the Marcos administration’s true target for poverty alleviation in the country--that is, a single-digit poverty incidence rate by 2028.

“We hope we can reduce poverty to a single-digit rate by the end of the term of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., as he has set out to do when he assumed the presidency,” he said in a statement Friday afternoon, Dec. 22.

Earlier in the day, it was reported by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) that poverty incidence in the country has dropped to 22.4 percent of the population in the first half of 2023 from 23.7 percent in the same period in 2021.

According to the PSA, the 22.4-percent rate translated to 25.24 million Filipinos, while the 1.3-percentage-point drop meant that almost 900,000 individuals lifted themselves from poverty.

“We are happy for 900,000 of our countrymen whose situation has improved from being poor over the past two years. We will continue to help the more than 25 million get out of poverty through intervention programs Congress, principally the House where the national budget emanates, should consistently fund,” Romualdez said.

Marcos assumed the presidency on June 30, 2022. He will remain in office until 2028.

While there is still a long way before the Marcos adminsitration achieves a single-digit poverty incidence rate, Romualdez has vowed to help the government achieve this goal.

He says the House of Representatives, which he heads, will continue to pursue and fund Marcos' programs that are intended to improve the lives of millions of poor Filipinos.

The House leader cited the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation, TUPAD (Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers), free college education, free health insurance, and the grant of direct cash subsidies as among government intervention measures aimed at reducing poverty.

Romualdez earlier disclosed that for the first time, Congress has earmarked in the 2024 national budget P60 billion for a new program called AKAP (Ayuda sa Kapos ang Kita). Under this, 12 million poor and low-income families will receive a one-time financial grant of P5,000.

The Speaker said some P500 billion worth of "ayuda" or social amelioration in the 2024 budget was set aside for social service-related programs

Citing a World Bank study, he said there is concrete evidence that direct cash grants are an effective tool for lessening poverty among the population.

“Our own 4Ps is proof of this. Many beneficiary-families have improved their situation by producing college graduates,” he said.

The P5.768-trillion General Appropriations Act (GAA) for 2024 or national budget was signed into law last Wednesday.