Rural ProblemsFor the past four decades, rural development and rural reform have been an area of concern of both government and non-government organization. Pres. Ramos said, the rural folks have to be brought into the economic mainstream and their access to growth centered improved. While improvements have been done for the rural areas, much more needs to be done. The rural areas have considerably lagged behind Metro Manila and other urban centers. The plight of rural folks has been far from rosy.

Poverty Poverty and inequality in the Philippines remains a challenge. In the past four decades, the proportion of households living below the official poverty line has declined slowly and unevenly and poverty reduction has been much slower than in neighboring countries such as the People's Republic of China, Indonesia, Thailand, and Viet Nam. Economic growth has gone through boom and bust cycles, and recent episodes of moderate economic expansion have had limited impact on the poor. Great inequality across income brackets, regions, and sectors, as well as unmanaged population growth, are considered some of the key factors constraining poverty reduction efforts. About half of the Philippines 88 million people live in rural areas. Poverty is most severe and most widespread in these areas and almost 80 per cent of the countrys poor people live there. Agriculture is the primary and often only source of income for poor rural people, most of whom depend on subsistence farming and fishing for their livelihoods. In general, illiteracy, unemployment and the incidence of poverty are higher among indigenous peoples and people living in the upland areas. Overall, more than a third of the people in the Philippines live in poverty. The poorest of the poor are the indigenous peoples, small-scale farmers who cultivate land received through agrarian reform, landless workers, fishers, people in upland areas and women. There are substantial differences in the level of poverty between the regions and provinces and the poverty gap between urban and rural areas is widening. Indigenous people living in highly fragile and vulnerable ecosystems, people in the uplands of the Cordillera highlands and on Mindanao Island are among the poorest in the country.The causes of poverty in rural areas in the Philippines vary widely from island to island. Among the causes of rural poverty are a decline in the productivity and profitability of farming, smaller farm sizes and unsustainable practices that have led to deforestation and depleted fishing waters. Rural areas lag behind in economic growth and they have higher underemployment. This is partly because poor people have little access to productive assets and business opportunities. They have few non-farm income-generating activities, and people lack access to microfinance services and affordable credit. Some vulnerable groups also face specific problems. For example, indigenous peoples have high illiteracy rates and are affected by the encroachment of modern technology and cultures onto traditional norms and practices. Fishers face continuing reduction in their catches and they have few opportunities or skills outside of fishing. Women have limited roles outside of marketing and family responsibilities.Causes of PovertyThe main causes of poverty in the country include the following: low to moderate economic growth for the past 40 years; low growth elasticity of poverty reduction; weakness in employment generation and the quality of jobs generated; failure to fully develop the agriculture sector; high inflation during crisis periods; high levels of population growth; high and persistent levels of inequality (incomes and assets), which dampen the positive impacts of economic expansion; and recurrent shocks and exposure to risks such as economic crisis, conflicts, natural disasters, and environmental poverty.Key FindingsThe report's key findings include the following: Economic growth did not translate into poverty reduction in recent years; Poverty levels vary greatly by regions; Poverty remains a mainly rural phenomenon though urban poverty is on the rise; Poverty levels are strongly linked to educational attainment; The poor have large families, with six or more members; Many Filipino households remain vulnerable to shocks and risks; Governance and institutional constraints remain in the poverty response; There is weak local government capacity for implementing poverty reduction programs; Deficient targeting in various poverty programs; There are serious resource gaps for poverty reduction and the attainment of the MDGs by 2015; Multidimensional responses to poverty reduction are needed; and Further research on chronic poverty is needed.The report comprehensively analyzes the causes of poverty and recommends ways to accelerate poverty reduction and achieve more inclusive growth. In the immediate and short term there is a need to enhance governments poverty reduction strategy and involve key sectors for a collective and coordinated response to the problem. In the medium and long term the government should continue to pursue key economic reforms for sustained and inclusive growth.

Rural educationThe Problem of Rural Education in thePhilippines

In this journal, I have discussedthe relationshipbetween education, poverty alleviation, and economic development. The link is critical and the three are self-reinforcing. Education creates greater opportunities for the youth, who go on to work decent jobs in cities like Bacolod, Manila, and Cebu. The childrenremit money back to the parents, who spend on home improvements and the tuition fees for the younger siblings. College-educated individuals are much less likely to end up impoverished (about 1 in 44). Trade schools also create opportunities, with only one in 10 people with post-secondary degrees living below the poverty line. Unfortunately, the ratios drop precipitously after that. One in three high school graduates and half of elementary school grads are impoverished. Here are the soberingeducation statistics:The long-term outlook for poverty reduction doesnt look good either, unfortunately. We all know that there is a very strong link between education (or lack of education) and povertytwo-thirds of our poor families have household heads whose highest educational attainment is at most Grade 6. Well, the education statistics (all from the NSCB ) tell a very sad tale: elementary school net participation rates (NPR)the proportion of the number of enrollees 7-12 years old to population 7-12 years oldhave plummeted from 95 percent in school year (SY) 1997-98 to 74 percent in 2005-2006, as have high school NPRs.Cohort survival rates (CSR) have also dropped: Out of every 100 children who enter Grade 1, only 63 will reach Grade 6, down from 69 children in 1997-1998. In high school, CSR have dropped even more: from 71 to 55. Which means, of course, that school dropout rates have increased? Which is one of the reasons why, in 2005-2006, for the first time in 35 years, total enrollment decreased in both elementary and high school: although private school enrollment increased, public school enrollment went down more?The correlation is not difficult to see, but fixing the problem presents a challenge for several reasons. According to some observers, the Department of Education Culture and Sports (DECS) in the Philippines is one of themost corrupt government entitiesin the country. It has a budget equal to 12% of spending, but is riddled with graft from procurement (buying textbooks and other supplies), grease money, and bribes for just about any sort of movement within the bureaucracy. Theimpacton the education system is detrimental:Embezzlement, nepotism, influence peddling, fraud and other types of corruption also flourish. Corruption has become so institutionalized that payoffs have become the lubricant that makes the education bureaucracy run smoothly. The result: an entire generation of Filipino students robbed of their right to a good education.This corruption leads to poor allocation of resources. Teachers are underpaid and treated poorly. In 2005, the Philippine government spent just$138 per student, compared to $852 in Thailand, another developing country in Southeast Asia. But graft and corruption are not the only issues. Poverty is a vicious cycle that leads traps generations of families.

About 80% of the Filipino poor live in the rural areas of the country. These are towns located deep in the mountains and the rice fields. The population density in the rural parts of the country is low, and there is a corresponding deficiency in schools and classrooms. Public school is free, but families still cannot afford to send their children for a complicated network of reasons. In this editorial for the Pinoy Press, one authordelineatesthe key issue:With around 65 million Filipinos or about 80 percent of the population trying to survive on P96 ($2) or less per day, how can a family afford the school uniforms, the transportation to and from school, the expenses for school supplies and projects, the miscellaneous expenses, and the food for the studying sibling? More than this, with the worsening unemployment problem and poverty situation, each member of the family is being expected to contribute to the family income. Most, if not all, out-of-school children are on the streets begging, selling cigarettes, candies, garlands, and assorted foodstuffs or things, or doing odd jobs.

Beyond the selling goods on the street, children in farming families are expected to work in the fields during harvest time. In agriculture-based communities where farming is the primary livelihood, having children around to help with the work means more income for the family. In a recent trip to Valladolid, someone told me that children are paid 15 pesos for a days work in the blistering heat. They are pulled from school for two or three months at a time and are irreparably disadvantaged compared with their classmates. So, they may have to repeat the grade, only to be pulled out of school again next year.Transportation is another big problem. Kids walk 2-3 kilometers or more to and from school every day. They have to cross rivers and climb hills with their book bags. The ones that can afford it take a tricycle, but that is a luxury. Schools are sometimes too far for the most remote communities to practically access. So the families cant afford to pay and the children are pulled from school.

It seems like an intractable problem. Corruption in the education bureaucracy and a lack of resources make delivering a high-quality education to all Filipinos a challenge. Microfinance is one way to help. With the assistance of microcredit loans, women can pay for the education of their children to purchase uniforms, textbooks, lunches, and rides to school. Also, by creating another source of income other than farming, the children do not have to come help the family work the fields. When I talk to NWTF clients about their dreams, they unfailingly say they hope for their children to finish their studies. History has shown that it is an achievable goal. But real systemic change needs to come from above. As long as corruption and bureaucracy paralyzes the system, the goal of delivering a decent education to children which pays dividends to the country in the long run will remain out of reach.For the rural poor, non-profits exist to help in the mission of education. While looking up pictures for this post, I came across a Filipino organization called the Gamot Cogon (Grass Roots) Institute:The Gamot Cogon Institute (a non-stock, non-profit organization) is an Iloilo-based cultural institution working to transform society through human development approaches including education and training. GCI also prototypes or demonstrates alternative approaches to education, agriculture, health, and full human development.

Rural Health and NutritionInmedicine,rural healthorrural medicineis theinterdisciplinarystudy ofhealthandhealth caredelivery inrural environments. The concept of rural health incorporates many fields, includinggeography,midwifery,nursing,sociology, economics, andtelehealthortelemedicine.Research shows that the healthcare needs of individuals living in rural areas are different from those in urban areas, and rural areas often suffer from a lack of access to healthcare. These differences are the result of geographic, demographic, socioeconomic, workplace, and personal health factors. For example, many rural communities have a large proportion of elderly people and children. With relatively few people of working age (2050 years of age), these communities have a high dependency. People living in rural areas also have poorer socioeconomic conditions, less education, higher rates of tobacco and alcohol use, and highermortality rateswhen compared to their urban counterparts.[1]There are also high rates of poverty amongst rural dwellers in many parts of the world, and poverty is one of the biggestsocial determinants of health.Many countries have made it a priority to increase funding for research on rural health.These efforts have led to the development of several research institutes with ruralhealth mandates, including theCentre for Rural and Northern Health ResearchinCanada,Countryside Agencyin theUnited Kingdom, the Institute of Rural Health inAustralia, and theNew ZealandInstitute of Rural Health. These research efforts are designed to help identify the healthcare needs of rural communities and provide policy solutions to ensure those needs are met. The concept of incorporating the needs of rural communities into government services is sometimes referred to asrural proofing.

For rural communities, health and nutrition are intricately linked with farming, food production, income generation, culture and community life. So Groundswell supports local organizations to improve community health and gain better access to health services. Women generally are often the key link between family and childhood health and production, as they are deeply involved in both. In the Andes, farmers know that Pachamama (mother earth) and must be cared for to maintain soil fertility, and that soil health is directly connected to the level and quality of food production. Good food and nutrition in turn contributes to healthy families and communities, which are needed to continue the cycle of people living sustainably on the land. So EkoRural supports local organizations to improve community and reproductive health in marginalized indigenous communities. In Burkina Faso, women are a storehouse of knowledge on biological diversity and how to keep their children fed during the hungry season, relying on nuts, fruits, leaves and other products from surrounding trees and bushes as well as small livestock they manage. Groundswell is supporting womens groups to increase vegetable production for their families and improve their nutritional knowledge and practices. In Haiti, Groundswells partner organization Partenariat pour le Dveloppement Local (PDL) strengthens local peasant organizations to improve life in rural communities. In addition to promoting sustainable farming, seed and grain banks, and savings and credit cooperatives, they also help communities to organize health production committees. PDL health staff train local health promoters from the committees, in themes such as reproductive health; prevention of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases; hygiene and sanitation to prevent disease; childhood nutrition; and the production of natural medicines. The health promoters and committees then survey local needs and develop and implement local action plans to address them. After the earthquake in January 2010, Haiti was struck another devastating blow when a cholera epidemic broke out in October of that year. Communities made urgent calls for support to respond to this deadly outbreak, and Groundswell and PDL sprung into action. Staff coordinated with the community health promoters to organize massive education campaigns for over 1,500 families (9,000 people) to help people understand the cause and prevention of cholera. People passed on what they learned to others. The peasant organizations quickly identified cholera cases in their areas, and responded with antibiotics and oral rehydration fluids we provided. Chlorine was distributed to disinfect water, and through education has become an ongoing practice for over 950 families. For longer term prevention, we have provided support and training to peasant organizations to launch a campaign to build over 285 latrines and over 180 simple, household water purification filters so far. As of September 2011, over 439,000 cases of cholera have occurred in Haiti, with over 6,266 deaths. Even though it works with communities in the heart of the area where cholera broke out, PDLs effective work has helped local peasant organizations save hundreds of lives, preventing all but a few deaths.

Rural Change and DevelopmentRural developmentgenerally refers to the process of improving the quality of life and economic well-being of people living in relatively isolated and sparsely populated areas.Rural development has traditionally centered on the exploitation of land-intensive natural resources such as agriculture and forestry. However, changes in global production networks and increased urbanization have changed the character of rural areas. Increasingly tourism, niche manufacturers, and recreation have replaced resource extraction and agriculture as dominant economic drivers.The need for rural communities to approach development from a wider perspective has created more focus on a broad range of development goals rather than merely creating incentive for agricultural or resource based businesses. Education, entrepreneurship, physical infrastructure, and social infrastructure all play an important role in developing rural regions.Rural development is also characterized by its emphasis on locally produced economic development strategies.In contrast to urban regions, which have many similarities, rural areas are highly distinctive from one another. For this reason there are a large variety of rural development approaches used globally.Developmental actionRural development actions are mainly and mostly to development aim for thesocialandeconomic developmentof the rural areas. Rural development programs are usually top-down from thelocalorregionalauthorities,regional development agencies,NGOs, national governments or international development organizations. But then, local populations can also bring about endogenous initiatives fordevelopment. The term is not limited to the issues fordeveloping countries. In fact many of thedeveloped countrieshave very active rural development programs. The main aim of the rural government policy is to develop the undeveloped villages.Rural development aims at finding the ways to improve the rural lives with participation of the rural people themselves so as to meet the required need of the rural area. The outsider may not understand the setting, culture, language and other things prevalent in the local area. As such, general people themselves have to participate in their sustainable rural development. Indeveloping countrieslikeNepal,India, integrated development approaches are being followed up. In the context of many approaches and ideas have been developed and followed up, for instance,bottom-upapproach, PRA-Participatory Rural Appraisal, RRA-Rapid Rural.

Naval State University Naval, BiliranCollege of Education

Written ReportIn SOCIETY AND CULTURE(RURAL PROBLEMS)

Submitted by:Vismanos, Joyce C.

Submitted to:Henry Delapena