The poverty incidence among population, or the proportion of poor Filipinos whose per capita income is not sufficient to meet their basic food needs in the llocos Region registered at 20.2 percent in 1st semester 2021. This translates to 1.07 million who lived below the poverty threshold. ln the same period in 2018, the poverty incidence among population in the region was posted at 11.7 percent.

On the other hand, the subsistence incidence among population in the region, or the proportion of population whose income is not enough to meet even the basic food need, was estimated at 7.1 percent or 375.9 thousand.

Poverty Among Families in the llocos Region

The poverty incidence among Filipino families in the llocos Region in 1st semester 2021 was estimated at 15.8 percent or 200.3 thousand poor families. This is defined as the proportion of families with per capita income less than the per capita poverty threshold to the total number of families. This was estimated at 8.7 percent in the same period of 2018.

The subsistence incidence among families in the region, or the proportion of families in extreme poverty, was estimated at 5.3 percent in '1'r semesler 2021 This is higher than the 1.8 percent subsistence incidence recorded in 1st semester 2018.

Provincial Poverty lncidence Among Population and Families

Pangasinan posted the highest poverty incidence among population at 23.6 percent, higher than the poverty incidence recorded in the region of 20.2 percent in 1"t semesler 2021, and still higher than its level of 14.4 percent in 1st semester 2018. Meanwhile, llocos Norte recorded the least poverty incidenee among population at 9.0 percent. llocos Sur and La Union recorded 22.5 percent and 13.9 percent poverty incidence among population, respectively.

Of the four provinces of the region, Pangasinan has the highest poverty incidence among families at 18.6 percent ln 1't semester 2021 . The province was also the highest in 1't semester 2018. Meanwhile, the lowest poverty incidence among families was recorded in llocos Norte with 6.3 percent.

By province, Pangasinan recorded the highest subsistence incidence among population at 9.0 percent in 1't semester 2021. llocos Norte recorded the least subsistence incidence among population at 1.2 percent, the same level in 1st semester 2018.

Among families, the highest subsistence incidence in the region in 1't semester 2021 was recorded in Pangasinan at 6.7 percent. llocos Norte, on the other hand, posted the lowest subsistence incidence and maintained its level in 1st semester 2018 at 0.9 percent. Meanwhile, llocos Sur and La Union recorded subsistence incidence among families of 5.8 percent and 2.8 percent, respectively.

Food and Poverty Thresholds

ln first semester 2021,lhe per capita food threshold of llocos Region was PhP10,802, higher by 19.9 percent from the PhP9,012 value in lst semester 2018. During the same period, the per capita threshold in the region increased by 20.5 percent from PhP12,837 to PhP15,470.

On the average, a family of five needed at least PhP9,002 to meet the family's basic food needs for a month in llocos Region. On the other hand, at least PhP12,892, on the average, was needed to meet both basic food and non-food needs of a family of five in a month in the region.

llocos Sur has the highest poverty and food thresholds in the region in 1st Semester 2021. This means that the province has the highest minimum income requirements to meet both basic food and non-food needs. lt was followed by llocos Norte and Pangasinan. Meanwhile, La Union has the lowest poverty and food thresholds in the region during the period.

ln addition to the thresholds and incidences, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) also releases other poverty-related statistics such as the income gap, poverty gap and severity of poverty. Table 3 shows these statistics for the 1st semester 2018 and 1st semester 2021.

ln the first semester of 2021, on the average, income of poor families in the llocos Region were short by 23.4 percent of the poverty threshold. At the provincial level, Pangasinan recorded the highest income gap at 24.2 percent in 1st semesler 2021. This means that poor families in the province were short by 2a.2 percent of the poverty threshold. llocos Sur followed closely with 24.1 percent. Meanwhile, La Union and llocos Norte recorded 20.0 percent and 17.3 percent income gap, respectively.

SGD. ATTY. SHEILA O. DE GUZMAN

Regional Director, RSSO I