UNITED NATIONS: PHILIPPINES VIOLENCE PREVENTION
Philippines: Quality of Life
The Philippines has a HDI value of 0.699, ranking 116 out of 191 countries globally in terms of Human Development Index and classified as a medium on the Human Development Classification. Since 1990, the quality of life within the Philippines has been improving, although there has been a decrease since 2020 mainly due to the SARS-Cov 2 virus. Between 1990 and 2021, the HDI value of the Philippines changed from 0.598 to 0.699, a change of around 16.9%.
Main Industries:
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Business process outsourcing (BPO)
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BPO has become a large part of the industry within the Philippines due to a variety of reasons such as their high English proficiency and digital literacy rate​
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Construction
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Remttiances
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Agriculture
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​ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
The Philippines actually has one of the fastest growing economies in the world. What used to be a primarily agriculture focused country, the Philippines are changing into an economy that focuses more on services and manufacturing. The GDP of the Philippines is over 394 billion. GNI which is another deciding factor of HDI in the philippines was 3550 per person in 2021 which was around a 6% increase from the last year but this was most likely due to the steep decline from 2019 to 2020 with a decrease about 11% presumably from COVID, but this quick recovery shows a stability in their economy.
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EDUCATION
Philippine’s education was heavily influenced by its colonial history. The most critical contribution to its education came from America’s occupation of the country, which started in 1898, this was when English was introduced as the primary language taught in schools. The Department of Education administers the education system in the 13 official regions of the Philippines. Generally the government has found it difficult to fund the entire education system, therefore most of the funds are concentrated towards primary schools. This is why the public school enrollment for primary school is about 90%, whilst the secondary school enrollment hovers around 70%.
Present day, the Philippines has an extensive and highly inclusive education system and the USA continues to influence its education.
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The formal education system of the Philippines is structured in a 6+4+4 structure
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6 Years Primary​
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4 Years Secondary
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4 Years Post-Secondary
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​The academic school year starts in June, and ends in March, covering a total of 40 weeks of school. Higher education institutions work on a semester system; fall semester, winter semester and an optional summer semester.
PhilHealth
​PhilHealth is a government-owned corporation that administers the public healthcare system in the Philippines. It was first set up in 1995 for universal coverage of healthcare.
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Currently about 90% of the population is a member of that programme, with different membership categories depending on the work, income, age, and other factors.
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Lot of its fundings comes from “sin taxes” relating to alcohol or tobacco. This first started in 2012, and its success led to additional taxes later. ​​
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HEALTHCARE
The Philippines has reached universal healthcare, and it is free. It is paid by national and local government subsidies however it still combats unequal access to medical care; the public healthcare is excellent in urban centers compared to rural areas of the country. There is also an issue of FIlipino medical staff moving to western countries which has resulted in 75% of areas being understaffed and experiencing delays for treatment, which could be detrimental to a person's health. The main problem with healthcare in the Philippines is the lack of equipment/substandard equipment. The problem with lack of appropriate tools has become quite an issue during COVID with only 4 out of 17 main regions having the expected hospital beds per 1000 people.
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INFRASTRUCTURE
Housing:
The infrastructure in the Philippines is still currently developing. With 70 million people living in substandard housing, this is especially dangerous since it is the third most disaster prone country (based on the World risk index). There are also huge issues regarding the affordability of housing, it is estimated that people use 30% of their income on housing, and many people cannot even afford housing.
Transportation:
The main methods of transportation in the Philippines are public buses and jeepneys. These public transport methods are not the cleanest or sanitary and they are known for overcrowding. The Philippines also does not have one major bus company, but rather has multiple companies, because of this, there are very few bus stations because there is not just one central bus company that can transport people in connected routes.
Services:
​The access to services in the Philippines can vary depending on various factors such as location, socioeconomic status, and infrastructure development. In terms of accessibility to water and sanitation, access to clean water and sanitation is a concern, especially in rural areas.
Transparency, Accountability, Justice and Trust:
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The government of the Philippines is rated 116 out of 180 for corruption (based on the corruption perceptions index).
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As the sole rulers of the country they have power to change laws and give out rulings that may only benefit them or cause harm to their citizens.
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Corruption can entail a lot of fraud that would have otherwise been used for the wellbeing of the country.
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Corruption in the judicial system of the Philippines is also a major problem:
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Bribery and payments in return for favourable desicions are common
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Rich and powerful groups and individuals hold power over the judicial system, and influence the results
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The low salary of the judicial employees help to increase the risk for bribery
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GOVERNMENT
The Philippines is governed as a unitary state under a presidential representative and democratic constitutional republic. They use a system where an elected person represents a group of people with the same key values, similar to how elections are done in North America. Unitary state indicates that the Philippines is governed solely by the government and the president is elected by the people for a single six-year term and is responsible for implementing laws and making decisions for the country.
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Political Corruption: The Padrino System
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The Philippines politics are mainly arranged by families or a group of families within an alliance
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Rather then a organized voting system​
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A person can gain favour, promotion or political status through nepotism
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According to the Civil Service Commission, nepotism is a form of corruption that violates the Constitution
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EQUITY / INCLUSIVENESS
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Workplace:
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The Philippines is working well towards having fair job opportunities for women in the workplace and making sure that women are treated well in the workplace
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78.4% of its gender gap is closed
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Philippine Magna Carta for Women is a law that bans discrimination against women which was signed about 13 years ago​​
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​​​​​​Women are seen to work more in certain professions more than other
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​​There is a certain way a women should work​​​
​2SLGBTQIA+
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The Philippines continues to be a very conservative country and its viewpoints on the 2SLGBTQIA+ community tend to be rather hateful
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Acceptance of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community is hard and people who identify to be a part of it tend to hide their identities because of the effects it can have on their daily life
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2SLGBTQIA+ members are mistreated and are discriminated against when they come out which also leads to many feeling unsafe
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Many protesters and activists are fighting towards new policies against discrimination
Specific areas of technological advancement:
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Cybersecurity
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Software and services
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Enterprise applications
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Smart cities
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Telecommunications
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TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENT
Information and communications technology (ICT) in the Philippines is experiencing significant growth driven by investments, consumer spending, and the demand for better services. The country has implemented a digital transformation program that focuses on various aspects, including cloud data centers, software development for business process improvement, the conversion to smart cities, cybersecurity for data privacy, and the improvement of internet and mobile services. These initiatives aim to enhance the quality of life in the Philippines and address the challenges faced by businesses. In March 2022, former President Duterte signed an amendment to the Public Service Act, allowing up to 100% foreign ownership of public services. Additionally, in 2016, the government established the Department of Information and Communications Technology. The growing transportation and infrastructure sectors are driving the demand for hardware and software solutions in the country.