There is a need to review and revise the government’s housing policy to take into account the access of residents to work and social services, among others.
Dr. Mary Racelis, urban anthropologist at the University of the Philippines Diliman, urged policymakers to view housing beyond physical structure – especially in Metro Manila, where informal settlers account for about 35 percent of the population.
“The vast majority want to remain there because it makes total economic and family access to resources sense,” she explained during a forum on the issue in late April, highlighting how relocation programs often severe critical livelihood connections
“For the urban poor, housing is not just houses, right? It is not apartment dwellings,” Racelis emphasized. “Housing is the community setting environment of the economy, [it is] where people work, get their income, have access to social services, health services, and so on. So, housing must be seen in a much larger context.”
She cited examples of home-based workers—from welders to beauticians—whose incomes depend on staying in their current neighborhoods.
For her part, Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Vice President Dr. Marife Ballesteros said that while working-age Filipinos often migrate from rural areas to urban centers, some later return to their provinces upon retirement – a trend referred to as “reverse migration.”
Racelis also pointed out that educated children of informal settlers often face difficult choices: remain in overcrowded cities to stay close to family, or move far away in search of affordable housing.
RETHINK HOUSING POLICIES
Racelis and Ballesteros called for a radical shift in how the government approaches housing development.
Ballesteros emphasized the need for data-driven policymaking that includes marginalized groups.
“We cannot continue planning without considering the most vulnerable… They have to be heard, they have to be seen in the data, and they have to be part of the planning process,” Ballesteros said.
She stressed that current approaches fail to account for the complex realities of “the elderly, persons with disability, women in rural areas,” whose needs must be prioritized in housing solutions.
On the other hand, Racelis urged policymakers to listen more closely to grassroots communities: “A city is not just its buildings—it is its people. If we continue ignoring the housing needs of 60 percent of our population, we are not just failing those communities, we are failing our collective future.”
Meanwhile, Housing Developers Association Executive Director Santiago Ducay also proposed concrete solutions to address these challenges.
Noting the rise of non-traditional living arrangements, he suggested, “Perhaps they can consider allowing loans not just for related individuals by consanguinity but also friends and other arrangements.”
Ducay also stressed the need to prepare for an aging population. This includes developing retirement communities with integrated healthcare services, designing adaptable housing units, and utilizing existing housing stock, noting “the government [owns] some 2 million housing units classified as acquired assets.”
“Limited access to decent housing would affect household formation and decisions to [have] children,” with long-term consequences for national development, Ballesteros warned.
