Marawi siege caused ARMM poverty incidence to spike in 2018 —NEDA

Marawi siege has contributed to the slight increase of poverty incidence in the former Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao in 2018, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said Friday.

Based on Philippine Statistics Authority's latest poverty records in the country, the ARMM lagged behind on decreasing the number of the poor among its residents.

“One reason is the higher increase in food prices there, if you will remember that’s where rice prices reached P70 per kilo and another is armed conflict,” NEDA Undersecretary Adoracion Navarro said at a press conference held in Manila.

“The Marawi incident is one of them but even after we won the Marawi conflict, there are still persistent local conflicts because of the presence of armed groups there,” she added.

On May 2017, the ISIS- inspired Maute group laid siege to the Islamic City of Marawi situated in Lanao del Sur. Clashes between the terrorists and state security forces had driven away thousands of families.

According to the PSA, the poverty incidence among families in the ARMM slightly increased from 53.3% in 2015 to 53.6% in 2018.

Basilan, Lanao del Sur, and Sulu were the poorest provinces in the country with poverty incidence of 65.7%, 64.1%, and 74.3%, respectively.

The nationwide poverty incidence among Filipino families in 2018 was at 12.1%.

Delayed rehabilitation

The rehabilitation of the war-torn city remains snail-paced, according to the NEDA.

“Admittedly, there are delays. The  money is there, it’s just that the programs or projects are slow-moving,” Navarro said.

She underscored that these may be addressed through “tighter monitoring and communication with the stakeholders.”

To arrest the rising poverty incidence in the region, in general, Navarro said that ensuring the proper implementation of social protection and cash transfer programs is vital.

She added that the issue on alleged “ghost beneficiaries” of government assistance must be given attention.

Sustaining peace-building efforts in Mindanao is also crucial, Navarro pointed out.

Given that the ARMM has already been replaced by the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) earlier this year, the authorities will make adjustments on the study.

“PSA will do a backcasting of the estimation of the BARMM figures to include the new territories,” Navarro said.

The newly-formed BARMM is composed of the provinces of Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi as well as Marawi City, Lamitan City, Cotabato City and 63 villages in North Cotabato. —LBG, GMA News