OCTA poll: Self-rated hunger among Pinoys rises to 14% or 3.7M families

Self-rated or involuntary hunger among Filipinos increased to 14% or 3.7 million families in the last quarter of 2023, the latest Tugon ng Masa (TNM) survey by OCTA Research poll showed.

The TNM poll, conducted from Dec. 10 to 14 last year, reported that the 14% involuntary hunger for the fourth quarter last year is higher than the 10% or 2.6 million families recorded in September 2023.

"The 4% increase, which represents approximately 1.1 million families, deviates from the downward trends observed in the second and third quarters of 2023," OCTA Research said.

Visayas registered the highest incidence of self-rated hunger at 19%, followed by Mindanao at 18%.

Balance Luzon and National Capital Region posted 11% and 8% self-rated hunger, respectively.

Meanwhile, the 18% self-rated hunger in Mindanao in December 2023 was an increase from 9% in October 2023.

Among those whose families experienced hunger in the last three months, 89% said they experienced hunger either once or a few times, while only 11% experienced hunger often or always.

Poverty

Meanwhile, self-rated poverty among Filipinos slightly decreased to 45% or 11.9 million families during the same survey period.

The 45% self-rated poverty rating is a slight decrease from the 46% self-rated poverty or 12.1 million families recorded in October 2023.

The latest Tugon ng Masa survey by OCTA Research was conducted using face-to-face interviews with 1,200 respondents aged 18 and above.  

The same poll has a ±3% margin of error at a 95% confidence level.

On the other hand, subnational estimates for the geographic areas covered in the survey have the following margins of error at a 95% confidence level: ±6% for Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. — VDV, GMA Integrated News