MANILA, Philippines – Hunger rate in the Philippines “hardly moved” from the second to the third quarter of 2022, according to the most recent survey of pollster Social Weather Stations (SWS).

In a report published on Saturday, October 29, SWS said 11.3% of Filipino families – or around 2.9 million – had nothing to eat at least once in the past three months, almost similar to the 11.6% hunger rate in June 2022.

The number, however, is slightly lower than the 12.2% hunger rate in April 2022 (estimated 3.1 million families) and 11.8% hunger rate in December 2021 (estimated three million families), both under the administration of previous president Rodrigo Duterte.

The SWS survey of September 29 to October 2 is the first under the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Involuntary hunger was highest in Metro Manila at 16.3%, followed by Mindanao at 15.3%, Balance Luzon at 9.6%, and Visayas at 7.0%.

“It has been highest in Metro Manila in 25 out of 99 surveys since July 1998,” the report read. “The 0.3-point decline in overall hunger between June 2022 and October 2022 is due to a decline in Balance Luzon, combined with increases in Metro Manila, the Visayas, and Mindanao.”

Out of the 2.9 million hungry Filipino families, 573,000 described their experience as “severe hunger;” for the rest, it was “moderate hunger.”

A total 1,500 adult respondents nationwide participated in the third quarter 2022 survey which used face-to-face interviews. SWS interviewed 300 each in Metro Manila, the Visayas, and Mindanao, and 600 in Balance Luzon.

The margin of error for national percentages was at ±2.5%. For Metro Manila, the Visayas, and Mindanao, the sampling error margin was at ±5.7% each; while it was ±4.0% for Balance Luzon.

The survey question was, “In the last three months, did it happen even once that your family experienced hunger and not have anything to eat?”

Inflation – which records increase in prices of critical commodities – was 6.9% in September, the highest in four years.

A survey conducted by pollster Pulse Asia in September found 42% of Filipinos disapproved of the Marcos administration’s response to the rising prices of goods.