The National Economic and Development Authority in Central Visayas (NEDA-7) revealed yesterday that the region posted as the second highest decline in poverty incidence in 2023.

“Central Visayas is moving in the right direction towards the vision of the Filipino people of a prosperous, predominant middle-class society where no one is poor,” NEDA-7 Regional Director Jennifer Bretana said.

Poverty incidence among families in the region dropped from 22 percent in 2021 to 12.3 percent in 2023, returning to near pre-pandemic levels of 12.2 percent in 2018.

Of the 18 regions, Central Visayas posted the second highest decline at 9.7 percentage points.

These data were presented during the regional data dissemination forum on the 2023 Full Year Poverty Statistics organized by the Philippine Statistics Authority in Central Visayas (PIA-7).

The 17.3 percent poverty incidence among population for 2023 exceeded the Central Visayas Regional Development Plan (CV-RDP) 2023 target of 23.5 percent, surpassing it by 6.2 percentage points and bringing the region closer to its 2025 target of 17.1 percent, placing the region ahead of schedule.

NEDA-7 highlighted some policy frameworks and programs to help further reduce poverty.

The Tatak Pinoy Act and Trabaho para SA Bayan Act aim to further build a resilient labor force through skills development and encourage investments in producing innovative and highly sophisticated Filipino products to create higher- quality jobs.