Reports
Discussion Papers
No.259 Income Disparity among Persons with Disabilities Assessed by Education and Sex: Findings from a Field Survey Conducted in Metro Manila, the Philippines
by Jose Ramon Albert, Soya Mori , Celia Reyes, Aubrey Tabuga, and Tatsufumi Yamagata
October 2010
ABSTRACT
How
do
persons
with
disabilities
(PWDs)
earn
a
living?
From
the
view
point
of
poverty
reduction,
this
question
is
quite
critical
in
developing
countries.
This
paper
presents
an
investigation
of
economic
activities
of
PWDs
in
the
Philippines
where,
among
developing
countries,
disability-related
legislation
is
relatively
progressive.
In
2008,
a
field
survey
was
conducted
in
cooperation
with
Disability
People’s
Organizations
(DPOs)
using
a
tailor-made
questionnaire
in
four
representative
cities
of
Metro
Manila.
The
level
and
determinants
of
income
of
PWDs
were
examined
with
Mincer
regression.
Conclusions
are
as
follows:
(1)
The
incidence
and
depth
of
poverty
are
greater
among
sample
PWDs
than
that
of
the
total
population
in
Metro
Manila.
(2)
There
is
remarkable
income
disparity
among
PWDs
which
is
associated
with
education
and
sex.
(3)
After
controlling
individual,
parental,
and
environmental
characteristics,
it
was
found
that
female
PWDs
are
likely
to
earn
less
than
male
PWDs
due
to
fewer
opportunities
to
participate
in
economic
activities.
It
is
suggested
that
female
PWDs
are
doubly
handicapped
in
earning
income.
Keywords:
Disability;
Philippines;
Poverty;
Rate
of
return
on
education;
Gender;
Mincer
regression;
Heckman
selection
model.
JEL
classification:
D31,
I12,
I20,
I31,
J16,
J31,
O53
Please note that discussion papers are works in various stages of progress and most have not been edited and proofread and may contain errors of fact or judgment. Revised versions of these papers may subsequently appear in more formal publication series. The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s). The IDE does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included and accepts no responsibility for any consequences arising from its use.