Lance Katigbak —VANESSA B. HIDALGO
What’s the Filipino dream?
“In a world the place nations usually rally round a unifying imaginative and prescient—the American Dream, the Chinese language Dream—it’s peculiar that the Philippines, the thirteenth most populous nation on the globe, lacks a transparent articulation of its personal,” says Julian Cua, managing director at Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Manila within the “The Filipino Dream” report.
BCG initiated in late 2024 a survey on what constitutes “The Filipino Dream,” drawing insights from 1,484 people throughout Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.
The report was authored by Anthony Oundjian, Julian Cua, Lance Katigbak, Anjeli Panis and Lilian Cheong. The highlights have been lately shared by Katigbak in a discussion board hosted by Thames Worldwide Faculty.
“Filipinos are nonetheless very hopeful and really optimistic. We’re nonetheless dreaming of a greater future, residing wholesome, affluent lives. All of us share a dream however the causes they pursue these desires are very completely different,” says Katigbak, a principal at BCG Manila.
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Greater than half of surveyed Filipinos dream to have the ability to fund any medical emergency or well being scare, and to begin their very own enterprise.
Particularly, 58 % of respondents picked well being safety as their best choice, whereas 56 % opted for entrepreneurship.
Concluding the highest 4 checklist, Filipinos additionally dream of getting a big financial savings fund (51 %) and shifting into their dream home (44 %).
3 buckets of desires
After rating their desires, they have been categorized into three buckets: large, consensus desires; secondary shared desires; and distinctive desires.
The primary bucket (large, consensus desires) accommodates the highest two desires.
The second bucket constitutes aspirations which are value pursuing, however of a lesser precedence—like shifting right into a dream house, having massive financial savings, paying off money owed and touring extra ceaselessly.
Proudly owning a dream car, upgrading home equipment, migrating overseas in addition to shopping for luxurious objects make up the final bucket (distinctive desires), or these which are of “greater precedence for some individuals, though not as a lot as others.”
However the report additionally brings into focus that solely 46 % of Filipinos are ready to face a monetary disaster.
Extra health-conscious
“On a extra optimistic word, Filipinos understand themselves as more healthy and are actively investing of their well being. Greater than half (58 %) reported that their well being had considerably or considerably improved in comparison with the earlier yr,” says the report.
Filipinos are additionally spending extra on health-care merchandise, with dietary supplements as the highest product class, like cough cures made out of lagundi, capsules with mangosteen extract or natural meals dietary supplements to fight sore throat and physique ache.
Survey knowledge present that over 60 % of Filipinos are coated by some kind of well being plan reminiscent of well being upkeep organizations, or are insured by the Philippine Well being Insurance coverage Corp. Nonetheless, solely 65 % of these with well being plans are ready to cowl expensive medical remedies.
As well as, the report factors out that Filipinos worry emergencies befalling not simply themselves, but additionally their households and family members.
“Because of this, many have turned to conventional financial savings and lending programs to assist construct that monetary security internet,” the report notes.
Counting on personal functionality
The pandemic has additionally sharpened Filipinos’ entrepreneurial abilities, the research notes.
Extra Pinoys began their very own enterprise between 2019 and 2023, largely in retailing, reminiscent of opening sari-sari shops or meals and beverage shops like karinderyas.
The analysis additionally unveils a number of facets of how Filipinos view their desires.
The primary side reveals that their desires are extremely interpersonal: 76 % say that the majority of their desires are for the betterment of their households.
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The second side reveals that Pinoys stay optimistic that they will obtain their desires: 53 % say that they’re one step nearer to attaining their aspirations. This sentiment is stronger within the rural communities (58 %) than within the city areas (49 %).
In pursuing their desires, Filipinos really feel they must rely extra on themselves than search assist from private and non-private establishments. Sixty-five % of the individuals leverage their academic background to attain their desires. That is a lot greater than their belief of their job (49 %), employer (43 %) or large companies (38 %).
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As well as, Filipinos surmise that public establishments might be of little assist in turning their aspirations into actuality.
“Our interpretation of that is that Filipinos really feel distrusting towards establishments and as a substitute suppose they have to depend on themselves. Dreaming of monetary safety for well being scares is an indication of a scarcity of belief within the nation’s well being care system, whereas the will to begin a enterprise will be learn as a must construct monetary stability unbiased of employment,” the report says.