Poverty incidence has been declining in the Philippines over the past 10 years. However, with the advent of the Asian crisis in 1997, there was a reversal in poverty trends. Estimates indicate that the headcount index has gone up to 40 percent in 1998 from 31.8 percent in 1997. Other nonincome-based measures of poverty also suggest deterioration in the welfare conditions, particularly of the poor.The paper looks at the trends in the Philippines in the past ten years using income-based and nonincome-based measures of poverty. In particular, indicators relating to employment, education, health and access to basic facilities are used.
