The National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) has called for the expansion rather than the defunding of the Barangay Development Program (BDP), citing its role as a vital engine in driving down poverty rates across thousands of former conflict-affected areas.
Speaking at the FAQCheck online press conference, NAPC Lead Convenor Secretary Lope Santos III highlighted the positive trajectory observed across covered communities since the program’s rollout in 2021. An analysis overlaying BDP coverage with Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Small Area Poverty Estimates revealed noticeable poverty drops, particularly in Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas (GIDA).
“The BDP should be expanded — not reduced. In my view, we should add more areas to the BDP, not cut it,” Sec. Santos stated. “We must connect more barangays to main roads, telecommunications, and electricity. We must bring development to lowland, upland, and coastal communities alike.”
Many local government units (LGUs) have seen poverty incidence drop below 20%, leaving fewer municipalities in the highest poverty bracket of 29% and above. According to PSA data, Northern Samar fell from 51.8% in 2015 to 27.6% in 2018, and down to 19.3% in 2021. Eastern Samar dropped from 40.9% in 2018 to 24.7% in 2023. Significant reductions were also recorded across Caraga, the Bicol Region and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
As the flagship peace and development initiative of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), the BDP has mobilized ₱44 billion over five years. It functions as a unifying framework, coordinating LGU plans, national agency programs, and community participation to deliver farm-to-market roads, health stations, schools, and livelihood assistance directly to Indigenous Peoples, farmers, and fisherfolk.
“Armed conflict blocks government services, and blocked services keep people poor,” Santos explained. “Where peace is restored… poverty naturally falls as basic needs are met.”
Amid calls from some groups to defund or abolish the program, Santos emphasized that the government must not back down from these gains.
“Our revolution is a revolution against poverty — through concrete programs, projects, and services,” Santos declared. “The NTF-ELCAC serves as a vital bridge for peace and development — and we must not turn back now.”