ISSN: 1908-6989 ISSN: 1908-6989 Network CBMSCBMSCBMSUpdates www.pep-net.org Vol. V No. 1, December 2007 The Many Faces of Poverty in Eastern Samar* Henry Afable and Marsmath Baris, Jr.** Cover photo (left): Daily scenes of rural life in the Province of Eastern Samar. (Source: www.batch2006.com) Inside In 2006, the Community-Based Of the total population, about 176,798 or News Updates - Philippines Monitoring System (CBMS) was 51.7 percent are male while 165,032 or CBMS gains foothold in Bicol 8 implemented in Eastern Samar. The 48.3 percent are female. Males outnumber partial results of the CBMS survey their female counterparts with a sex ratio covering 94 percent of the total number of 107.1 males for every 100 females. This of barangays in the whole province (562 is higher than the national sex ratio of out of 597) are now available. This article 101.43 recorded in the 2000 Census on presents a summary of these partial Population and Housing. results. Eastern Visayas LGU reaps Population Profile CBMS core indicators benefits of CBMS 10 Based on the available results, Eastern Table 1 summarizes the list of CBMS core Samar has a population of 341,830 and a indicators for the province of Eastern total of 70,523 households with an Samar. Each indicator is discussed in average of 4.8 persons per household. greater detail in the succeeding paragraphs. Borongan City, the provincial capital, has the largest population in Eastern Samar, Child Deaths contributing 15.0 percent, followed by Of the 49,495 children under five years MIMAROPA RDC sees increased Guiuan (10.9 percent), Oras (7.7 of age, 384 or 0.8 percent died 12 months role of CBMS 11 percent), Llorente (5.3 percent) and Can- before the census period. Overall, the avid (5.3 percent). The least populous percentage of male child deaths was 55.5 municipality meanwhile, is Maslog (1.1 percent while that of female child deaths percent). was 44.5 percent. < next page * Excerpts from the paper on the partial results of the consolidation of the CBMS data of 562 out of 597 barangays in the Province of Eastern Samar. Note that the ranking of the top five municipalities in terms of population may not yet be consistent with the results of the 2000 Census on Population and Housing pending submission of CBMS data from the remaining 35 barangays. Call for project ** Provincial Planning and Development Coordinator of the Province of Eastern Samar and Researcher, proposals 12 CBMS Network Coordinating Team. Research Results The province recorded a total of 2,568 Table 1. Summary of informal settler or squatter CBMS Core households. In terms of magnitude, Indicators, most of these informal settlers can be Eastern Samar, found in Borongan City (13.7 percent). 2006 In terms of proportion to households, meanwhile, the highest was observed in Brgy. Gayam in the Municipality of Taft where 96 percent or 48 out of 50 households were considered squatters. The least number of squatters, on the other hand, was in Balangkayan with only 24 squatter households out of a total of 1,762. Moreover, only 3 out of 561 barangays namely, Barangays Naga, Cambilla and Poblacion 4 in the Municipalities of Oras, Quinapondan and Lawaan, respectively, registered zero cases of squatter households. Among the municipalities, Jipapad There was almost parity between male had the highest under-five mortality and female who are malnourished (50.3 Access to safe water rate where 58 out of its 941 children percent for males and 49.7 percent for The 2006 CBMS survey revealed that 2 died before they reached age five. On females). out of 10 households in the entire theother hand, Mercedes had a zero province have no access to safe water. under-five mortality rate. Across municipalities, the highest This problem is magnified in the proportion of malnourished children Municipality of Maslog where all of its Meanwhile, among the 562 barangays, was recorded in Jipapad with more 680 households have no access to safe Brgy. 13 Poblacion in Salcedo recorded than 50 percent of children 0-5 years water. the highest proportion of child old being moderately or severely mortality with 4 deaths out of 22 underweight. Meanwhile, Brgy. Meanwhile, a total of 32 barangays in children under five years of age. Recare, also in Jipapad suffered from the province are entirely without severe malnutrition with 62 out of 67 access to safe water which affects a Women deaths children being malnourished. total of 2,215 households. On the other hand, 21.4 percent or 120 out of 561 There were a total of 72 cases of women Households living in makeshift barangays in the province reported deaths due to pregnancy-related housing having already access to safe water. causes in the province. The highest proportion of maternal deaths was Among the province’s 70,523 The main sources of drinking water observed in Jipapad where 7 out of 166 households, 2.7 percent lived in houses were shared faucet from community women died of complications related whose walls and roofs were made of water system (30.95 percent), shared to pregnancy and child birth. makeshift materials. artesian well (21.88 pecent) and shared Meanwhile, the municipalities of deep well (9.74 percent). Giporlos, Mercedes and Sulat recorded The Municipality of Can-avid registered zero maternal deaths. the highest proportion of households living in makeshift housing while Access to sanitary toilet facilities among barangays, the highest Malnourished children proportion was recorded in Brgy. Mina- The proportion of households with anod in the Municipality of LLorente. own water-sealed flush to sewerage/ A total of 2,965 out of the 49,495 septic tank was 54.42 percent. Of the children in the province whose ages Households that are informal 23 municipalities comprising the ranged from 0 to 5 are malnourished. settlers/squatters province of Eastern Samar, Maslog 2 CBMS Network Updates December 2007 Research Results recorded the highest proportion of Meanwhile, all children aged 13-16 Meanwhile, all households in at least 5 households without access to sanitary years old in at least three barangays in barangays in the province had incomes toilet facilities, with 57.6 percent or the province were not attending high below the poverty threshold. Two of 392 out of 680 households without school. Two of these affected barangays these barangays are in Borongan City. access. At the level of barangays, 2 are in the Municipality of Maslog. The city however, also registered the (Brgys. San Isidro and San Miguel in lowest poverty incidence at 47.2 the Municipalities of Lawaan and Only one barangay in the entire percent. Across barangays, Brgy. Giporlos, respectively) had no access province registered 100 percent Trinidad in the Municipality of Oras to sanitary toilets. Only 15 out of the secondary school participation: Brgy. posted the lowest poverty incidence at 562 barangays in the whole province 5 Poblacion in the Municipality of 3.6 percent. reported having access to sanitary Llorente. toilets. Households with income below Male non-participation rate in high the food threshold Elementary school non- school exceeded that of females at 60.4 participation percent vs. 39.6 percent. The subsistence incidence in the The elementary non-participation rate province was posted at 52.6 percent, meaning that more than half of the of school-aged children (6-12 years School non-participation of old) in the Province of Eastern Samar households in Eastern Samar had children aged 6-16 years old incomes that cannot provide for their stood at 23.5 percent. This means that basic food requirements. 2 out of every 10 children in the A total of 16,820 out of 101,421 province are not attending children in the province aged 6-16 Jipapad, Arteche and Hernani were the elementary school. years old are not attending school with the highest proportion among top 3 municipalities with the highest subsistence incidence rates, while, This problem is especially prevalent in municipalities recorded in the Borongan City registered the lowest the Municipality of Hernani where the Municipality of Hernani at 34 percent subsistence incidence at 36.3 percent. elementary non-participation rate is or 789 out of 2,321 children while at All 23 municipalities had subsistence almost twice the provincial average. the barangay-level, this problem was incidence rates in the double-digit Among barangays, the highest very prevalent in Brgy. Padang, also in range. proportion of children aged 6-12 years the Municipality of Hernani where 97.4 old who are not attending elementary percent or 261 out of 268 children Across barangays, the highest school was registered in Brgy. Padang were not attending school. proportion of households with income in the same municipality. Out of 187 below the food threshold (P9,442 Rural children, 181 or 96.8 percent were not / P9,430 Urban) was observed in Brgy. going to elementary school. Households with income below the poverty threshold San Andres in Borongan City where 98% or 99 out of 101 households had Secondary school non- Poverty incidence or the proportion of incomes that cannot meet their basic participation households with income below the food requirements. poverty threshold (P13,257 for Rural For secondary school non- and P13,704 for Urban) in the province participation rate of children aged 13- stood at 63.5 percent or a total of Food shortage 16 years old, the figure stood at 43.2 44,773 out of 70,523 households. A total of 10,120 out of 70,523 percent, meaning that 4 out of every households in Eastern Samar 10 children in this age range were not Except for 8 municipalities, all experienced food shortage.