28% of Pinoys say quality of life got better than 12 months before—SWS

Twenty-eight percent of adult Filipinos believe that their quality of life got better in the past 12 months, according to a survey released by Social Weather Stations (SWS) on Saturday, Nov. 25.

In the survey, which was conducted from Sept. 28 to Oct. 1, the percentage of Pinoys who said that their quality of life improved was marked "fair" compared to its "very high" score in June this year. It has also been considered the lowest since June 2022.

Thirty percent of the participants said it got worse, while 41% said it's been the same since last year.

"This gives a Net Gainers score of -2 (% Gainers minus % Losers), classified by SWS as fair (– 9 to zero)," the SWS said.

"The September 2023 Net Gainer score was 13 points below the very high +11 in June 2023. It was the lowest since the -2 in June 2022," it added.

According to SWS, the Net Gainer was "generally negative" until 2015. It began showing positive numbers "until the drastic deterioration beginning with the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns." Since then, it has trended back upwards "but has not fully recovered to pre-pandemic levels."

The SWS linked the figures in every area to the 13-point drop in the national net gainer score from June 2023 to September 2023.

In Metro Manila alone, net gainers dropped from "very high" to "fair" in June 2023—a 27-point deficit from +18 to -9.

The latest survey was conducted among 1,200 adults— 13% of whom were in Metro Manila, 45% in Balance Luzon (outside Metro Manila), 19% in the Visayas, and 23% in Mindanao—via face-to-face interviews.

The proportion of Filipinos whose quality of life gained and remained unchanged decreased, while the number of losers increased in comparison to the SWS survey made public in October and carried out between June 28 and July 1.