UNIVERSITY OF THE pmLIPPINES

Master of Arts in Women and Development Studies

Rowena Aygue Laguilles

The Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps):Towards Women's Empowerment or Further Entrapment?

Voices of Beneficiaries in Legazpi City

Thes'Adviser:

}~J1~ll~~o, Ph.D.College ofSoci:lu~ork anl Community Development

University of the Philippines Diliman

ThesisReader:

Nathalie Lourdes A. VercelesCollege of Social Work and Community Development

University of the Philippines Dillman

Date ofSubmissionApril 10,2012

Permission is givenfor the following people to have access to this thesis:Available to the generalpublic No

Available only after consultation with author/thesis adviser YesAvailableonly to those bound by confidentiality agreement No

Student's signature:

Signature of thesis adviser:

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COLLEGE OF SOCIAL WORK AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENTUniversity of the PhilippinesDillman, Quezon City 1101Philippines

ACCEPTANCE SHEET

This thesis, entitled "The Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps): TowardsWomen's Empowerment or Further Entrapment? (Voices of Beneficiaries in LegazpiCity)" submitted by Rowena A. Laguilles in partial fulfillment ofthe requirements for thedegree ofMaster ofArts in Womenand DevelopmentStudies, is hereby accepted.

~~.(~.:wALO' Ph.D.Thesis Adviser

Accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree ofMaster ofArts inWomen and DevelopmentStudies.

~~ f) ;?.. /1' .. t:'V'~ UL.J-.!2 .~ROSALINDA PINEDA- FRENEO, Ph.D.DeanCollegeof Social Work and Community DevelopmentUniversityof the PhilippinesDiliman, Quezon City

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COLLEGE OF SOCl.U WORK A.ND COMMTJNITY DEVELOPMENTUniversity oftbe PhilippinesDillman, Quezon City 1101 Philippines

ENDORSEMENT

DR. ROSALINDA PINEDA-OFRENEODeanCollegeof SocialWork and Community DevelopmentUniversity of the Philippines DilimanQuezon City, Philippines

Dear Dean Ofreneo,

I am pleased to endorse for your approval the thesis of ROWENA AYQUELAGUILLES entitled "The Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps): Towards Women'sEmpowerment or Further Entrapment? (Voicesof Beneficiaries in Legazpi City)."

Ms. Laguilles' thesis, through its examination of the official documents related to thegovernment's Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) and more significantly throughthe experiences and testimonies of mother beneficiaries of the program, shows the failureof the 4Ps to take into account the gender-specific poverty situation of the mothers.Consequently, while the mothers welcome the limited financial assistance extended by the4Ps, the program does not radically alter their impoverished situation. And far fromempowering women, the program conditionalities and the responsibilities demanded fromthe mother-beneficiaries, without any explicit expectations from the fathers, reinforce thetraditional gender roles in the household.

This thesis provides empirical data and a feminist analysis of the viability andeffectiveness, or the lack of it, of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program as it affects poorFilipino women.

i~~~{~~ Ph.D.Thesis AdviserApril 2, 2012

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COLLEGE OF SOCIAL WORK AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENTUniversity of the PhilippinesDillman, Quezon City 1101 Philippines

APPROVAL SHEET

We recommend the approval of the thesis ofROWENA A. LAGUILLES entitled "ThePantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps): Towards Women's Empowerment orFurther Entrapment? (Voices of Beneficiaries in Legazpi City)" for the degree ofMasterofArts in Women and Development Studies.

Truly yours,

Nathalie Lourdes A. VereelesReader/ Critic

vCurriculum Vitae

Name: Rowena Ayque Laguilles

Permanent Address: 107 Marquez St., Brgy. 14, Legazpi City, Albay

Degree and Date Conferred: M.A. in Women and Development Studies, April 2012

Date of Birth: January 7, 1984

Place of Birth: Daraga, Albay

Secondary Education: Sto. Nifio Institute of Science and Technology, Quezon City

Collegiate Institutions Attended:

University ofthe Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City. Master ofArts in Women and

Development Studies, April 2012

University ofthe Philippines, Dillman, Quezon City. Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics,

April 2005

Professional Positions Held:

Freelance Writer/Researcher at the EHB BPO, Inc. in Legazpi City since March 2005

Instructor at the STT College in Legazpi City from June 2005 to March 2006

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Acknowledgment

This thesis would not have been possible without the participation ofmother

beneficiariesfrom Legazpi City who let me in their lives and trusted me enough to take an

initial step in letting their voices be heard. Thank you also to Joy who walked with me

through the field site, rain or shine.

My sincerest thanks are due to my adviser Ma'am Judy, and the members ofmy thesis

panel Ma'am Natsy, Ma'am Marivic and Ma'am Jojo for sharing their brilliance and guidingme through the thesis-writing. I thank my thesis adviser Ma'am Ju.dy most ofall for making

me feel I could do this.

Thank you to my WD professors- Ma'am Inday, Ma'am Dazzle, Ma'am Guy, Ma'am

Titanne and again Ma'am Judy and Ma'am Natsy - most ofall for showing how academic

excellence should always be married to fighting against women's oppression in its many

dimensions.

Thank you to my WD sisters for the support many times over in class and beyond.

Thank you to my family and friends for the moral support, Special thanks to Ate Lyn

and Ate Lal for helping me out with many ofthe technical aspects ofthesis writing despite

their busy lives as homemakers and academicians; and Ate Nel and Nathan for letting me

stay in their home as I jou.rneyed my way through my graduate studies and finished. my

thesis.

Thank you to Mama and Papa, for always believing in me.

Dedication

Para ini kay Mama saka kay Papa.

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Abstract

The main objective ofthis study is to analyze the significance ofthe PantawidPamilyangPilipino Program, the ConditionalCash Transfer program ofthe Philippines, as a

development program in the lives of its mother beneficiaries who are situated in a gender-

specific poverty context through a privileging ofthe mother beneficiaries'own voices. In

particular, this study looks into 1) how the program contextualizesmother beneficiaries; 2)

the gender-specific poverty context ofmother beneficiaries;and 3) the views and experiences

ofmother beneficiariesund.er the program.

To achieve the aim ofthe study, the Pantawid PamilyangPilipino Program is first

separatelyanalyzed as a developmentpolicy for which an examinationofPantawid

PamilyangPilipino Program documents and related policy documents is conducted.Then, in

determiningthe local context ofmother beneficiaries' lives, 10 mother beneficiaries are

engaged in separate in-depth interviews. Finally, the mother beneficiaries'views on and.

experienceswith the program are sought through two focus group discussions,each with six

participants. The present study focuses on indicators identified by previous literature on the

ConditionalCash Transfer programs and based on the Genderand Development framework.

This study has found that consistentwith previous studies' findings on Conditional

Cash Transfer programs, the Pantawid. PamilyangPilipino Program keeps mother

beneficiariesin their impoverishedsituationsas it treats them only as women defmed by their

traditional role as mothers. While the program offers reliefto mother beneficiaries through

the additional although limited cash for meeting household expenses, it does nothing to

improvetheir material condition as the program neglects the factors that cause this, which

are the inaccessibilityofgoods and. services and the absence of stable income-earning

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occupations. This relief also comes at a price, as it reinforces women's subordinate position

within the household. It recreates the dynamics oftheir subordinate social position as it tasks

women to receiving, budgeting, and spending the family resources without consideration for

their own personal needs; obliges women to stretch their own resources in order to do all that

is required ofthem for the sake oftheir family's daily survival; and it further pushes them to

restricting themselves and their involvements to the household. On top of these, the

technical problems women experience within the program create in them feelings of

helplessness, fear, and. resignation to neglect, which further disempower them.

In place ofthe Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, the views and experiences of

mother beneficiaries surface a demand for a more comprehensive approach to addressing

poverty and ensuring development. One, access to goods and services must be secured. This

demands that the prices ofbasic commodities be affordable and that adequate social and

utility services must be in place. Two, there must be opportunities for them to improve and

make full use oftheir capabilities. This would include jobs, fmancial assistance and technical

support for small entrepreneurs, and education and training services for women as well as

men. Three, there needs to be active sensitization of men in the community regarding gender

issues, which could be achieved through barangay-Ievel gender sensitivity trainings. Four,

there needs to be support, financial and otherwise, for the women to organize themselves that

will enable them to further identify, analyze, and seek solutions to the gender needs and

interests that they have. A genuine women's organization will also make consultations with

policy makers possible and effective. Finally, a comprehensive national policy that would

enable women living in poverty to experience motherhood as a choice rather than a forced

occupation, such as the pend-ing Reproductive Health Bill, must be implemented.

1Table of Contents

CHAPTER 1: Background ofthe Study 4

1.1. Introduction 4

1.1.1. Women and Poverty: The Philippine Context 6

1.1.2. An Overview ofthe 4Ps 15

1.2. Statementof'the Problem 1-8.

1.3. Research Objectives 19

1.4. Research Questions 19

1.5. Scope and- Limitation 2..().

CHAPTER 2: Review ofRelated Literature and Conceptual Framework 22

2.1 Review ofRelated Literature 22

2.1.1. CCTs As Mere ReliefMeasure Rather Than- Poverty R-eduction Program 22

2.1.2. Instrumentalizing Mothers: Maternalism in CCTs 24

2.1.3. CCTs and Women: Gender Issues Surfaced 26

2.2. Conceptual Framework 32

2.3. Definition of Concepts 36

CHAPTER 3: Research Methodology 39

3.1 . Data GatheringMethods -40.

3.2. Research Sample 41

23.3. Participants of the Research 43

3.4. Ethical Considerations 45

.CHAPTER 4: PresentationofData 47

4.1. The Contextualization ofWomen Living in Poverty by the 4Ps 47

4.1.1. Poverty Is a Household Phenomenon 47

4,.1.2. Women, Are Secondaryand Subservient to the Needs o-fthe Househo-ld 49

4.1.3. Women Are Involved So Long As They Are Beneficial to the Program 52

4.2. The Everyday Lived Realities ofMother Beneficiaries 54

4.2.1. Material Situation 56

4.2.2. Household Dynamics 68

4.2.3. Personal Autonomy 71

4.3-. Mother Beneficiaries' Views and Experiences in the 4Ps 75

4.3.1. Lowered Expectations 76

4.3.2. .Anything for the Family 77

4.3.3. Better than Nothing 8-1

4.3.4. The Family Needs the Extra Money 85

4.3.5. Looking for Sustainability, Comprehensiveness and Accomplishment 86

CHAPl'ER 5: Analysis-ofFindings- 90-

5.1. A Palliative to Women's Practical Gender Needs 92

35.2. Capitalizing on Women's Subordinate Position 94

5.2.1. Promoting Gender Inequality 94

5.2.2. Women are Mothers Only 97

CHAPTER 6: Conclusions and Recommendations 103

References 107

Appendices.; 11-6

A. Transcript of In-Depth Interviews 116

B. Transcript ofFocus Group Discussions 161