In the slums of Manila

In the slums of Manila, where six million poor survive

LE MONDE | 23.12.09

Philippe Mesmer, Manille Envoyé special

The rain beats down on the tired sheet of corrugated iron covering her shack. "There are leaks," says the woman in a soft voice. “We got this sheet from landfill” The blackened walls drip with grime. In one corner on a small table stands a faded statue of the Virgin. A child lies on a sofa of washed out colours, covered with a blanket. Beside him sits Ariel, 14. Their mother, Philomena Aresgado, is middle-aged. In this tiny 5 m2 home where it is difficult to stand upright, she survives with her family by the fragile light of a single bulb.

The air here smells rank. 100m beyond the cobbled-together shacks that cling to the slopes stands Smokey Mountain: where tonnes of garbage have accumulated here in Payatas, at the heart of one of one of the most squalid slums of Manila, Philippines. Curved figures are hard at work on this stinking mass. Armed with a sharp stick and a bag, the workers dig through trash in search of plastic waste. All are at risk of being buried by a landslide mass of garbage. One such accident left 214 dead in 2000.

This is where Philomena and Ariel work. They have a special pass, because access has been restricted since the tragedy. They search from 6:00a.m. til 5:00 p.m., to earn 100 Pesos (1.4 euros); enough to buy rice, 30 pesos/kg (42 centimes), water, 4 pesos/10 litres (5 centimes), and to pay the rent. For the slum has its price: 300 pesos per month (4.23 euros).

The National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB), defines poverty as concerning those who earn less than 8,254 pesos (116.3 euros) per month. That is, 40% of the total Philippine population, against 30% in 2003. A survey conducted in September by the SWS (Social Weather Stations) revealed that 53% of Philippine households consider themselves poor. Poverty begins in the countryside. Farmers, along with fishermen, are the most affected, with poverty rates rising above 60% in some regions The situation forces villagers to move to the cities.

In Manila, nearly 6 million people live in slums Their access to public services is limited, and their lives often depend on the goodwill of local politicians "Most slums do not exist legally," says Jessica Dator-Bercilla, of the NGO Christian Aid.

Many children do not attend school: 3 million, according to UNICEF. Despite the construction of new classrooms launched by the Government of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, the enrolment rate in primary school did not exceed 85% in 2006, as opposed to 97% in 2001. Schools are often too far away. Transportation and equipment is expensive. "The Philippines only invests $ 200 (139 euros) per pupil per year, deplores Rina Lopez, President of Knowledge Channel, a private TV station specializing in the dissemination of educational programs. In some areas there are schools without teachers."

The establishment of the Alternative Learning System (ALS), which allows NGOs to teach several half-days a week, remains a stopgap. Ariel was spotted by a Japanese NGO, Kokkyo naki Kodomotachi (KNK), which has premises in Payatas The boy follows the class intermittently. "He does not come often," admits a teacher who works for KNK. Not often enough to hope for escape.

Slum dwellers struggle on the job market in a country where the unemployment rate reaches 17%. Young people who have achieved the upper secondary level, at great sacrifice to their families, can hope for a job in one of the many shopping malls which flourish in this country. Is this the chance to escape misery? Not really, since their contracts rarely exceed six months. "Beyond 6 months, and companies have to hire them full time and pay social security," said Jessica Dator-Bercilla.

The minimum wage is 320 pesos (4.5 euros) per day, but many workers, including temporary construction workers, often from the slums, only receive 200 pesos (2.8 euros). Ms. Dator-Bercilla describes the poor as "human material for development".

The economy does not allow the emergence of a middle class. Domestic consumption remains limited, exports are low, and foreign investment is still deterred by the high level of corruption. Admittedly the global crisis left the archipelago relatively unscathed. The gross domestic product (GDP) should grow, according to the World Bank, from 0.5% in 2009 and 3.1% in 2010. Gary Olivar, deputy spokesman for the government, sees in the lack of recession, "the positive impact of 330 billion pesos (4.5 billion euros) of recovery plans.

“The effects of the crisis have been reduced due to the low dependence on exports,” says Alberto Lim, Executive Director of the Makati Business Club. But this lack of openness impedes development. “The Philippine economy is like a boat that has not yet left the port.” Ulrich Lachler, from the Philippine office of the World Bank, believes that "the fruits of growth are not shared. The economy is growing, but poverty is increasing.” Enough to suggest that the Philippines will have a hard time meeting the UN Millennium Development Goals, whose principal is to "eradicate extreme poverty and hunger".

Philippe Mesmer