Inflation still top urgent concern of Filipinos – OCTA

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 15) – More than half of Filipinos said inflation remains the most urgent national concern that the government needs to resolve, OCTA Research revealed Monday.

According to the trend, the percentage of Filipinos concerned about inflation rose from 52% in 2022 to 57% in 2023.

READ: OCTA survey: Soaring commodity prices most urgent concern of Filipinos

Looking at the different locales, OCTA noted that Filipinos who reside in the Visayas said they were less concerned about controlling the increase in the prices of goods and services, with only 46% of them saying that it is an urgent concern.

In the National Capital Region and in Mindanao, six out of 10 residents said the increase in prices of goods and services should be the government’s top priority.

Improving and increasing wages of workers (45%) and access to affordable food such as rice, vegetables, and meat (44%) were also among the top concerns of Filipino adults.

Meanwhile, only 5% of Filipinos are still considering controlling the spread of COVID-19 an urgent concern of the government. It was the most urgent national concern in 2021 at 43%.

The research group said it slowly declined since the last quarter of 2021 as the pandemic became more manageable.

Also, charter change landed the least with only 1% of Filipinos saying it was an urgent national concern.

In terms of personal concerns, to stay healthy and avoid illnesses was tops with 66%. It was followed by finishing school or being able to provide schooling for their children at 51%.

There was also an 8% decline of Filipinos who are concerned about having enough to eat from 43% in October 2022 to 31% in March 2023.