ILOILO CITY, July 15 -- Poverty incidence in Western Visayas dropped to 13.7 percent in 2023 from 17.2 percent in 2021, surpassing its pre-pandemic level of 14.2 percent, the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) said Tuesday.

NAPC Lead Convenor Secretary Lope Santos III said the decline indicates the region has recovered from the pandemic and posted stronger economic performance.

To sustain the gains, Santos said the region should continue improving agricultural productivity, attract more infrastructure and investment, and strengthen climate resilience initiatives.

"Those are some of the macro views that we think will further contribute to continuing sustained poverty reduction in the region," he said during a media forum.

Poverty ...