Why is the Philippines a third world country?

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i go loony

For so many reasons... And all these reasons play in full circle.

One way a country can become prosperous is the number of people living in the country. We have a good number of citizens to unite with each other but many of these citizens arent utilized much in the nation as they are deprived of education which makes them incapable of participating well in the society. ANd one reason why they aren't given education that they deserve is the government's incapability or failure to meet the needs of many people.

The government actually can gain a lot of money by tourism alone if the government makes the Philippines a tourist-friendly place. If the Philippines was cleaner, if it is at least developed for more tourist attractions, and only if the cultural heritage areas are preserved, we can attract many people.

We actually have a lot of resources but it is so sad that it is not the Filipino people who benefit from these resources but foreign investors. Take mining for example. There are a lot of mining activities in the Philippines and this country has always been rich when it comes to minerals but it is the foreign investors who profit while the Filipino people are left living in sunken grounds.

Another thing is that there are so many exemptions in taxes in the Philippines. We can survive by taxes but not all companies pay proper amount of taxes because of exemptions and lack of implementations. There is something wrong with the Philippine constitution as it exempts the roman Catholic church and all the different churches from paying taxes. If these religious organizations have institutions and businesses, they can continue to manage without any worries to fail because they don't have any obligation to return something to the government anyway. There are so many businesses and institutions run by the said organization and the number is growing. Some make use of Christian names to sound like a religion-based institution or business just to be exempted to pay taxes. How unfair for other companies! This is the reason why some companies fail to give the right amount. They are not wiling because they are aware of the system. The country relies too much on the church for decisions which is actually a disturbance to many plans. Many people don't realize this.

Corruption is very rampant among politicians. With all the money that people pay in every visit to a certain government office, there would always be a monetary equivalent for every sercvice rendered. There are so many people visiting a government office in a day and they could accumulate millions of pesos in just one day. How can they fail to meet the needs of the people? The government has money but it's just that politicians and government offices pretending to be doing something put money on their pockets - to meet their own ends.

Another reason is that there is a great mismatch between jobs available and job finders.

But of course it's not fair to blame the government all the time. The citizens also have responsibilities that they fail to meet. Sometimes, it's the Filipino people alone who don't seem to care...

And that's why this country is categorized under TURD-world...

It's so sad that my country being blessed with beauty and good-hearted citizens (except politicians), is very much abused by so many things.

sandy

The simple truth is: corruption!

Many of the poorer countries, with vast resources, are badly managed and 'screwed' by the same politicians that the people voted them in.

One excellent ( or most terrible...) example is in a neighboring country, near to Philippines, the state chief minister is the biggest crook in the world.........and yet the central govt would not do anything about it!

This guy has companies that took all business projects, uses his relatives to ravage the state of its natural resources.............and the central govt wnet on to catch some fries in their anti-corruption drive!

This, in their political language,...... is "political patronage".........and every other guy wnats to be elected into public office..........not with the desire to serve...........but with the greed to 'rake it in' and be rich.

Philippines is a very good showcase of ........what a country should NOT be!

Plenty of resources, reasonably large & well educated populace............but the country is fcuked-up!

No western philosophy or persuasion could alter the status quo...........until the populace rise up in a 'people power' of a different kind.............change their mind-set & start to think of helping each other as neighbors............instead of thinking solely of enlarging & deepening your own pocket!

Sad............sad............bloody sad!

♦cat

because it is.....our resources was exploited by richer countries...our politicians are corrupt....health conditions....poverty level.....

Hawaii SEO

I know this will be an unpopular answer, but...

They are a third world nation because... They deserve to be a third world nation.

The citizens are the ones who are ultimately responsible for their government. Not the other way around.

Corruption, lack of education and exploitation are all avoidable circumstances. The Philippines only have these problems because they have not fixed them. They will continue to have these problems until they do something to change it.

Only the citizens of the Philippines can create long term change for themselves.

So far they just haven't done the work necessary to make positive changes happen but they are working on it. They see the positive changes in India and realise that they can make things better for themselves.

If they don't change things for themselves... Who is to blame for that? No one can force them to change.

randyvous75

ask this question to the Philippines government. by the way, third world is a little demeaning eventhough it may be true. Nowadays, it is called "developing nation" to be politically correct.

ZMP_girl

1. Because the public funds are not utilized well.
2. Because of language barrier. There's a lot of dialect used.
3. Not enough infrastracture.
4. Lot of separatist movement like the NPA (New People's Army.) There's also the MILF, and the Leftist that hampered development.
5. Some public office is not a public trust.
6. The peace and order is not mantained.
7. Laws are not followed.
8. Etc.

And beacause of these reasons, investors are reluctant to invest their money in the Philippines.

bluecross0924

corruption.. almost every politician want to become president not to serve the country and the people but to enrich themselves.. there is an imbalance of the distribution of resources, so only the rich get richer and the poor gets poorer...sometimes the poor should not only ask for the gov't to help them, they should have the initiative to work for themselves and not blame the gov't

IRconX

Filipinos tend to be very educated[ literally!!] and hard working, the problem with them is that they haven't learned to think outside the box and being self-made. I guess from observation, many seem to do the same thing.

Other hand...

NEW YORK CITY’S FILIPINO AMERICANS HAVE HIGHER INCOMES
AND MORE EDUCATION THAN NEW YORKERS OVERALL,
BUT ELDERLY FILIPINOS FACE GREATER LANGUAGE BARRIERS, CENSUS PROFILE REVEALS

Asian American Federation Also Reports That Filipino Americans
Are Fourth-Largest Asian American Group in New York City
And New York Area Has Fourth-Largest Filipino Population in a U.S. Metropolitan Region

Community Briefing Set for Thursday, July 15, at 6 p.m. at Philippine Consulate General

NEW YORK - Filipino Americans in New York City generally earn more money and have more education than New York residents as a whole. At the same time, while working-age Filipino Americans in New York tend to speak English better than their city-wide counterparts, elderly Filipino New Yorkers have less command of English than the city’s overall elderly population.

New York City’s Filipino American population, which grew by almost one-half in the last decade, is the fourth-largest Asian American group in the city. The New York metropolitan area also has the fourth-largest number of Filipino Americans in a U.S. metropolitan region.

These are among the facts in a profile of New York City’s Filipino American population issued today by the Asian American Federation of New York, a nonprofit leadership organization. Based on an examination of 2000 and 1990 U.S. census data, the profile is one of a series of demographic portraits prepared by the Federation’s Census Information Center (CIC) – a source of census data and analysis – to expand awareness of Asian American populations in the New York metropolitan area. The Filipino American profile is available at www.aafny.org.

The Federation will review profile findings and field questions at a community briefing Thursday, July 15, from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Kalayaan Hall on the 2nd Floor of the Philippine Consulate General in New York, at 556 Fifth Ave. (between 45th and 46th streets) in Manhattan. Media representatives are welcome. Joining the Federation and the Consulate General in sponsoring the event are Filipino American Human Services, Inc. (FAHSI); Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. - New York; and The Philippine American Chamber of Commerce, Inc.

“Our census profile offers important new information about the Filipino American community – a group often overlooked despite its size, growth, and contributions to the local economy,” said Cao K. O, executive director of the Asian American Federation. “The July 15th briefing will provide a forum for community members to learn, exchange information, discuss issues, and find new ways to work together.”

“The Consulate General commends the Asian American Federation for the great service being rendered to Asian American communities through its series of census profiles of Asian American populations,” said Philippine Consul General Cecilia B. Rebong. “The release of the Federation’s marker profile of Filipino Americans in New York City is significant because there are very few research studies and analyses of the Filipino population in the United States. The Federation’s demographic portrait will be an invaluable tool for the Consulate General in developing programs and activities responsive to the needs of Filipino Americans in New York.”

“FAHSI is proud to support the Asian American Federation in sharing information that offers crucial insight on New York’s Filipino American community and underscores the substantial and growing presence of this population,” said FAHSI Executive Director Sherry Lynn Peralta. “The Federation helped establish FAHSI and remains a staunch ally. The Federation’s profile of Filipino Americans will guide us in enhancing our efforts to increase the social well-being, self-reliance and civic participation of vulnerable community segments.”

Key profile facts include the following (referring to 2000 census data unless stated otherwise):

* From 1990 to 2000, New York City’s Filipino American population rose from 43,229 to 62,058, or 44 percent – compared with 9 percent for the city’s total population and 71 percent for its Asian American population.
* Filipino Americans constituted 7 percent of New York City’s Asian American population in 2000.
* Filipino New Yorkers earned more than city residents overall, by all income measures. Filipinos had median household income of $69,228, surpassing $38,293 for the total city population; median family income of $78,219, exceeding $41,887 for the entire city; and per capita income of $27,065, topping $22,402 city-wide.
* The general poverty rate for Filipino Americans in New York City was 6 percent (3,897) – considerably lower than 21 percent for the city overall.
* The vast majority (84 percent, or 38,653) of Filipino American adults in New York City had post-secondary education – compared with 48 percent of all adult New Yorkers. Meanwhile, only 7 percent (3,058) of the city’s Filipino adults had not graduated from high school – one-fourth of the 28 percent rate for adults city-wide.
* Some 40 percent of school-age Filipino American children in New York City attended private schools – making them more than twice as likely to do so than city children overall (of whom 19 percent went to private schools).
* Among working-age adults (age 18 to 64) in New York, 20 percent (9,539) of Filipino Americans had “Limited English Proficiency” – a lower occurrence than 25 percent for the city’s general population. (“Limited English Proficiency,” as used in the profile, refers to individuals who spoke English “well,” “not well” or “not at all” as of Census 2000.) However, in a reverse pattern, 40 percent (1,955) of elderly Filipino New Yorkers had limited English ability – exceeding the 27 percent rate for all senior citizens in the city.
* Some 38 percent of Filipino Americans in New York City owned their homes, while the city-wide home-ownership rate was 30 percent. The average Filipino American household in New York City had 2.82 people – compared with a 2.59-person average for all city households.
* Slightly more than half (54 percent, or 33,225) of New York City’s Filipino Americans lived in Queens, followed by Manhattan (16 percent, or 10,223); Brooklyn (13 percent, or 7,918); the Bronx (9 percent, or 5,446); and Staten Island (8 percent, or 5,246).
* More than 7 in 10 (72 percent, or 47,885) Filipino Americans in New York City were immigrants – double the percentage of immigrants among all city residents. Most foreign-born Filipinos in the city had moved to the United States in the last 20 years, and 73 percent of these recent immigrants were naturalized citizens – compared with 49 percent of all foreign-born New Yorkers who arrived in that time period.
* The majority (72 percent, or 48,084) of Filipino Americans in New York City were working-age adults; 21 percent (13,704) were children; and 7 percent (4,901) were senior citizens.
* Among all Filipino Americans in New York City, 58 percent were female and 42 percent were male, while the city’s overall Asian American population had an even gender distribution. The Filipino gender split was most pronounced, with a 3-to-2 female dominance, for working-age adults.

Russ Bear

i hear you all. the key is education. seeking knowledge and being able to make up one's own mind and not being led by corrupt government.

yes it is sad.

kimy

Sad to say its because we had corrupt government official,which don't give any d**n on the people.They just want power and money.And sad to say its the main factor why until now were on the 3rd world country.

Pseudo Obscure

Corruption

VeRDuGo

tell it to the bureaucrats.... they know not what they do.
tell it to the politicians.... they care only for their own welfare.
tell it to the activists.... they sought what they can't win nor even be granted.
tell it to the general public.... they try to make it on their own, survive in their own way.

yar2005

The Philippines is a third world country because its economy and per capita income is not as good as the first world country which means most of the people is still living below the poverty line. This because the government is too much concerned on politics. They waste too much money on elections. Government collect taxes but the money collected mostly goes to the hands of government officials ( they would deny this but this is true base on experience). The government forget about developing new technology and new good ideas.

stella m.d.

Because the government is run by corrupt, unqualified people. Even the brainless, uneducated individual becomes a public servant because he or she is popular and admired by the people.

It is also because that the money goes into the pockets of undeserving, dishonest government officials instead of developing the country for the benefit of the Filipino population.

devilinme

I dunno They describe Filipino brides as 'take away wives', I'll ask my wife, she is a filipino girl. We accidentally met & were both single & here we are, I'm white caucasion Australian man. I am happy to help her whole family thier, I don't shout it out but if the situation was on the other foot I would''ve appreciated the help. Soon we will be buying our own house with property. So we have an input to filipino economy its just a bit behind the eight ball due to bribery & corruption.

CORRUPTION pure and simple.

sansrival

The Philippines really is a nice country however, CORRUPTION is the name of the game!
Many Filipinos are college graduates, however, many of them are jobless. We are loosing many doctors, nurses, pharmacists, teachers and even pilots. Many had already migrated to the USA. Even successful doctors here go into the nursing course because they are better paid off as nurses in the US. They want to help the next generation,meaning their children and grandchildren since future here is not that promising.

double_g

blame the government!

vince

because of the culture and the people

Chris

Corruption... Taxes just don't get spend the right way... And it's really depressing because if you look at the Philippine private sector, it's progressive, that's because the company owners don't mismanage or usurp their funds... Filipinos are excellent managers, and they are good leaders too that is if they are not in government... When they go to government, there's some kind of demon possession that happens... they just turn corrupt... I'm just praying for a change in spirit in the government, because many have tried and their good spirit just does not last when they go to politics... It seems as if all politicians have one spirit up there, to steal, to bicker, to flaunt their names for next elections, and to plaster fake smiles waving to the crowd... That's all they do... I don't even know why we still have elections, throwing darts will yield the same results.

Soul Rebel

Yup. We all know the answers to why the Philippines is a 3rd World country. In fact, most Filipinos already know that (70% of the Filipinos maybe poor but they are NOT stupid).

There is only one solution to their problem. Total armed revolt against the those corrupt officials and the extermination of the corrupt politicians, cronies and their entire clans.

Unfortunately, that won't happen because most Filipinos have already lost their pride, partiotism and most of their balls because they are more concerned about financial survival for themselves and their families. That's why they go overseas to work, to get a greencard and to petition their families because the Philippines from 1986 onwards is already a pathetic piece of s-h-i-t. Filipinos no longer have the balls to stand up for what they believe and to make their country great again.

If you want to report me to Yahoo, go ahead. I don't f-u-c-k-i-n-g care. I've said the undeniable truth which the f-u-c-k-i-n-g rich would silence me with a bullet because I am f-u-c-k-i-n-g correct.

MommyKaye

korupsyon at mal edukasyon, kapag nakapag aral nman ngiging abusado

yellow_hubble

The Philippines as a third world country is measured by its progress. Mainly, there is little progress because of corruption.

But these sour-graping citizens should have a say about this too. I am a Filipina by the way.

We are by nature an indolent country, Rizal has already explained this. Being a Christian nation has its falls too. For centuries, we have kept our fate to other beings, not just to God but to other people who were built their statues. And this attitude prevailed. Hoping someone will get us out of our own misery. We have grown accustomed to the lack of discipline. But really, come on...our tomorrow depends on what we do today. And as long as the people do not bring discipline to themselves, I see no future for this promised island.

Of course, that can be brought about by a great leader...but...oh yeah again...corruption.

:(--->this is my first sad smiley for yahoo answers oh.... :(

aznflippgurl

Blame the Philippines Government !!

empire247

2 laws make the philippines a 3rd world country in which no one can understand why. 1) no foreigner can own land, 2) no foreigner can own more than 40% of a business. philipinos do not relize that they are getting screwed by these laws that are soposedly to protect them and here is why. law 1 : since no foreigner can ever own land in the phills that means only a philipino can own land and since 70% of the people live under poverty that means only the rich can afford to buy it. here is why that is a law. the very few rich in philippines do not have to worry about compitition from foreigners for land to build hotels or resorts (the gov says this law is protect the philippine land for the people but since the people cant afford to buy then the gov gets the land anyway ) law 2: same thing again since 70% are poor and no not have the capitol for a business it only leaves the rich to own businesses, this law really hurts the people bad for 1 reason, alot of american companies are looking to asia for factories to manufacture products cause of the cheaper cost of labor meaning bigger profits for the company. now if i owned a company and employed 1000 workers and decided to have my products made in asia to cut my labor rate by 90% why would i invest a few milion dollars in building a new factory that would employ 1000 workers where as i would have to let a philipino own 60% of the business and have no control of the company? and also to let a philipino get 60% of the profit . the philippines gov uses the excuse of why let a foreigner get rich with all the profits when in fact that law insures the rich there as getter richer by forcing a foreigner to partner up with a philipino to start a business. the philippines has the highest education in asia (including japan and korea) and yet they are losing everyday cause with those 2 laws in effect it opens the door to countries like thailand and vietnam who will welcome foreign business. also the phills has little or no middle class people. the middle class people are the ones who fuel the ecomony. they are the ones who will buy philippine products and keep the money flowing in the country. rich philipinos buy thier product from usa and europe and laugh at products made in philippines. the poor cant afford to buy anything other than basic necessities like food, so the burden of fueling the economy is left to middle class where they would have the extra money to buy. also that factory that would make a foreigner rich would also give 1000 philipinos a paycheck every month and they would spend thier money in thier comumity which would in turn fuel the local economy and keep the sari-sari store and eatery in business also. monopolies are also very common in the phils and since most are owned by polititions there are no laws against it. so unless they open up and let forgeiners in there will be no way to offset the lack of middle class and thus the philippines will remain a 3rd world country. one thing i have noiticed also while living there is the lack of patriotism from philipinos, no one wants philippine products and no one even admits to being a full blooded philipino in the country(they all say they are spanish blood or chinesse blood). i really find it a shame as philipino people are the most humble and friendliest people in the world and do not deserve to get raped by thier own government and thier own people. yes but the philippines has wonderfull beaches but "bad press" keeps the tourist away. if they disband the NPA and MILF and start promoting tourism and a safe country it would help them to atract foreigners. the philippines really needs to take some lessons from vietnam and learn how to help thier economy and open up to be part of a global economy or they will slip more and more and wind up like some of the african nations with millions starving. also the philippines is smaller than japan (total size of phills is about size of arizona where japan is about the size of california or 300k sq km vs 377k sq km )

Maganda

The Philippines is still trying to grow economically and politically.

bean

yeah, a Caucasian is already white and a house is already a property maybe the dude is from the outback and eaten too much kangaroo and dingo meat hehehe!

Bean

I'm not sure which part of Australia Michael F comes from, but, a "White Caucasian" and a "house with property" is mighty strange English to me...

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