Hand-to-mouth Existence

Shanties are dwarfed by the skyline of Ortigas business district as seen from floodway in Pasig City on Friday. National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the government on track in its efforts to reduce the poverty rate to 9% by 2028 after a new survey showed that 48%, or 13.2 million Filipino families, rated themselves poor in September, up from 45% or 12.5 million households in June. Manny Palmero