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
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