‘Invest to create jobs, control population’

Private analysts said the key to reducing poverty in the Philippines is in the hands of the government and must use it to unlock more inclusive growth: control the rise in population, reform government agencies and enhance the climate for investment that creates jobs.

Last week, the Annual Poverty Indicators Survey (APIS) released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) revealed that poverty incidence in the country worsened to 25.8 percent in the first half of 2014 from 24.6 percent a year earlier.