SWS: More Filipinos went hungry in Q3

MANILA, Philippines — More Filipinos became hungry in the third quarter of the year, with 15.7 percent of households or about 3 million Filipinos saying they experienced hunger at least once, according to the Social Weather Stations (SWS).

In the survey released Monday, the polling agency said hunger incidence went up in the last three months compared to 12.7 percent in the second quarter of the year, while 13.5 percent was recorded in the first quarter.

While slightly fewer families, at 1.6 percent, said they experienced "severe hunger," the degree of "moderate hunger" in households leapt from 10.8 percent in the second quarter to 15.7 percent in the third quarter.

Mindanao had the most cases of reported hunger at 21.7 percent, followed by 18.3 percent of those in Metro Manila. About 14.7 percent of the population in Balance Luzon also experienced hunger, while hunger incidence was only 9.3 percent in the Visayas.

First published on BusinessWorld on Sunday, the SWS conducted the survey from September 2 to 5 using face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults nationwide as a nationally represented sampling.

Respondents were asked if their family "experienced hunger and did not have anything to eat" in the last three months.

The year-round self-rated hunger, however, continued to decrease. In 2014, a total of 18.3 percent of households experienced hunger while 19.3 percent reported the same in 2013.