The National Urban Development and Housing Framework (NUDHF) 2009-2016 finds the housing problem to be serious and is a largely urban phenomenon. The magnitude of housing need, defined as the housing backlog plus new households, is enormous and is estimated to reach about 5.8 million housing units in 2016 (Chapter on Social Development). In Metro Manila, the total backlog has been projected to reach 496,928 housing units. Innovative and high-density housing strategies are required if the housing deficit is to be effectively addressed.
Beyond the public sector providing housing and the auxiliary services, new approaches are needed in the face of continuing rural-urban migration that is bound to exacerbate the housing problem. The affordability of and access to government housing programs by the poor will also continue to pose a major challenge in the near future.
The housing problem is evident in the proliferation of slums and informal settlements in the urban areas. Recent estimates show that more than a third of urban populations are slum dwellers. In Metro Manila there were about 581,059 informal settlers (data from HUDCC as of July 26, 2010). These communities are characterized by unsanitary conditions, congestion, and limited access to basic urban services (e.g., health centers, schools, waste disposal, safe water supply). Resettlement and relocation programs have been implemented but have attained limited success in providing employment, livelihood opportunities, and adequate services to many of the relocatees.
Government has allocated less than 1.0 percent of the total government expenditures for the housing sector in recent years, or less than one-tenth of a percent of GDP on the average. This makes Philippine public spending on housing one of the lowest in Asia. (Habito, 2009)28
The role of government in providing access to housing opportunities and services must be clarified. In the last four decades, government response to the housing problem has failed to rectify the fundamental issues of providing shelter, especially for the poor.
________________________________________________________________________________________________
28 This is based on Habito's 2009 paper for the Asian Development Bank (ADB).