Amartya Sen’s Capability Approach in the Analysis of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program

What is new about poverty? A question that anyone can answer and mostly can validate it through life experiences. Poverty is a concern for everyone, so it is hoped that everyone will work to interfere. However, with the number of research on poverty in a global context, it is practically difficult to track how each country addresses global poverty on its own. Hence, poverty is broad as its concept is concerned. Poverty is a difficult concept to describe, especially because it is a complicated and contentious social reality. Despite the challenges in obtaining a consensus description of poverty, the understanding for such concept is a significant endeavor, not just theoretically or empirically, but also practically, because this definition may be used in the future to orient public policies aimed at combating poverty or improving the living conditions of the impoverished. In most cases, poverty is associated to lack of income and to address as such is just a matter of wealth distribution. Which happens in the Philippines through a poverty reduction program the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program that aims to end poverty and yet, poverty remains a main concern and continue to persist. Thus, the aim of this paper is to scrutinize the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) implemented by the government as human development measure to end the vicious cycle of poverty. It aims to look at the purpose if the 4Ps is really gird towards human development or it lacks the principle of a fully human development measure in addressing poverty. This critical analysis is brought for the reason that researches are limited only as to the effects of 4Ps to its beneficiaries if the 4Ps is helpful or not. However, the paper wants to dig deeper as the goal of the 4Ps is concerned. Also, to contribute in the strengthening of the human development program of the government in the lenses of philosophical undertaking. In doing so, it applies the capability approach of Amartya Sen in the analysis of the 4Ps. As this paper argued that the capability approach of Sen gives us a holistic perspective of poverty in which Sen envisions a fully human development for the poor.