The National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) on Tuesday expressed support for the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) in reviewing its methods and metrics for determining the food thresholds and identifying food-poor individuals in the country.

NAPC Secretary Lope Santos III emphasized the need to recalibrate targets and measurements, particularly focusing on the 740,000 Filipino families currently classified as food-poor. He stressed that the issue goes beyond mere numbers, highlighting the economic disadvantages faced by many families.

The NAPC urged all stakeholders — including government agencies, local governments, the private sector, development partners and basic sectors — to collaborate and optimize resources to improve conditions for these poor families.

Updating the PSA’s metrics, according to the NAPC, will ensure that poverty-related initiatives are timely, accurate, and responsive to economic trends like inflation. “We expect that the revised metrics will more accurately reflect the real food needs of the poor,” the statement read.

While the poverty incidence in the Philippines has decreased to 15.5 percent in 2023 from 18.1 percent in 2021, the NAPC stressed that statistics should align with lived realities to support effective poverty-reduction efforts.

As the government’s policy-monitoring and advisory body for poverty-related programs, the NAPC is tasked with coordinating anti-poverty initiatives across sectors. The Commission aims to involve all sectors in the effort to eradicate poverty by 2040, in line with the AmBisyon Natin 2040 vision.

“We encourage the PSA to adopt holistic and grounded standards during its review and to consider inputs from the grassroots level,” the NAPC stated. The Commission noted that representatives from the 14 basic sectors are ready to participate in the review process to ensure that poverty-related measures reflect the lived realities of the poor.