Philippines

The Philippines,Template:Efn officially the Republic of the Philippines,Template:Efn is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. In the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of 7,641 islands, with a total area of roughly 300,000 square kilometers, which are broadly categorized in three main geographical divisions from north to south: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. With a population of over 110 million, it is the world's twelfth-most-populous country.

The Philippines is bounded by the South China Sea to the west, the Philippine Sea to the east, and the Celebes Sea to the south. It shares maritime borders with Taiwan to the north, Japan to the northeast, Palau to the east and southeast, Indonesia to the south, Malaysia to the southwest, Vietnam to the west, and China to the northwest. It has diverse ethnicities and a rich culture. Manila is the country's capital, and its most populated city is Quezon City. Both are within Metro Manila.

Negritos, the archipelago's earliest inhabitants, were followed by waves of Austronesian peoples. The adoption of animism, Hinduism with Buddhist influence, and Islam established island-kingdoms. Extensive overseas trade with neighbors such as the late Tang or Song empire brought Chinese people to the archipelago as well, which would also gradually settle in and intermix over the centuries. The arrival of the explorer Ferdinand Magellan marked the beginning of Spanish colonization. In 1543, Spanish explorer Template:Lang named the archipelago Template:Lang in honor of King Philip II of Castile. Catholicism became the dominant religion, and Manila became the western hub of trans-Pacific trade. Hispanic immigrants from Latin America and Iberia would also selectively colonize. The Philippine Revolution began in 1896, and became entwined with the 1898 Spanish–American War. Spain ceded the territory to the United States, and Filipino revolutionaries declared the First Philippine Republic. The ensuing Philippine–American War ended with the United States controlling the territory until the Japanese invasion of the islands during World War II. After the United States retook the Philippines from the Japanese, the Philippines became independent in 1946. Since then, the country notably experienced a period of martial law from 1972 to 1981 under the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos and his subsequent overthrow by the People Power Revolution in 1986. Since returning to democracy, the constitution of the Fifth Republic was enacted in 1987, and the country has been governed as a unitary presidential republic. However, the country continues to struggle with issues such as inequality and endemic corruption.

The Philippines is an emerging market and a developing and newly industrialized country, whose economy is transitioning from being agricultural to service- and manufacturing-centered. Its location as an island country on the Pacific Ring of Fire and close to the equator makes it prone to earthquakes and typhoons. The Philippines has a variety of natural resources and a globally-significant level of biodiversity. The country is part of multiple international organizations and forums.

Etymology

Template:Main During his 1542 expedition, Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos named the islands of Leyte and Samar "Template:Lang" after the Prince of Asturias, later Philip II of Castile. Eventually, the name "Template:Lang" would be used for the archipelago's Spanish possessions.<ref name="Scott-1994" />Template:Rp Other names, such as "Template:Lang" (Western Islands), "Template:Lang" (Eastern Islands), Ferdinand Magellan's name, and "Template:Lang" (Islands of St. Lazarus), were used by the Spanish to refer to islands in the region before Spanish rule was established.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

During the Philippine Revolution, the Malolos Congress proclaimed it the Template:Lang (the Philippine Republic).<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=The 1899 Malolos Constitution |url=https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/constitutions/the-1899-malolos-constitution/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170605215334/https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/constitutions/the-1899-malolos-constitution/ |archive-date=June 5, 2017 |access-date=February 11, 2023 |website=Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines |at=Título I – De la República; Articulo 1 |language=es, en}}</ref> American colonial authorities referred to the country as the Philippine Islands (a translation of the Spanish name).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The United States began changing its nomenclature from "the Philippine Islands" to "the Philippines" in the Philippine Autonomy Act and the Jones Law.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|date=August 29, 1916 |title=The Jones Law of 1916 |url=https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/constitutions/the-jones-law-of-1916/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808093938/https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/constitutions/the-jones-law-of-1916/ |archive-date=August 8, 2017 |access-date=March 12, 2021 |website=Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines |at=Section 1.―The Philippines}}</ref> The official title "Republic of the Philippines" was included in the 1935 constitution as the name of the future independent state,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=The 1935 Constitution |url=https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/constitutions/the-1935-constitution/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170625234400/https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/constitutions/the-1935-constitution/ |archive-date=June 25, 2017 |access-date=February 11, 2023 |website=Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines |at=Article XVII, Section 1}}</ref> and in all succeeding constitutional revisions.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|date=January 17, 1973 |title=1973 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines |url=https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/constitutions/1973-constitution-of-the-republic-of-the-philippines-2/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170625191553/https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/constitutions/1973-constitution-of-the-republic-of-the-philippines-2/ |archive-date=June 25, 2017 |access-date=March 14, 2021 |website=Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|date=February 11, 1987 |title=The Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines |url=https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/constitutions/1987-constitution/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170607182503/https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/constitutions/1987-constitution/ |archive-date=June 7, 2017 |access-date=March 14, 2021 |website=Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines}}</ref>

History

Prehistory (pre–900)

A burial jar with its lid decorated with two people on a boat

The Manunggul burial jar, one of the numerous burial jars found on the cave system

There is evidence of early hominins living in what is now the Philippines as early as 709,000 years ago.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Bones from Callao Cave potentially represent an otherwise unknown species, Homo luzonensis, who lived 50,000 to 67,000 years ago.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Greshko |first1=Michael |last2=Wei-Haas |first2=Maya |date=April 10, 2019 |title=New species of ancient human discovered in the Philippines |work=National Geographic |url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2019/04/new-species-ancient-human-discovered-luzon-philippines-homo-luzonensis/ |access-date=October 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190410173110/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2019/04/new-species-ancient-human-discovered-luzon-philippines-homo-luzonensis/ |archive-date=April 10, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Rincon |first1=Paul |date=April 10, 2019 |title=New human species found in Philippines |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-47873072 |access-date=October 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190410192730/https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-47873072 |archive-date=April 10, 2019 |author-link1=Paul Rincon}}</ref> The oldest modern human remains on the islands are from the Tabon Caves of Palawan, U/Th-dated to 47,000 ± 11–10,000 years ago.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Tabon Man is presumably a Negrito, among the archipelago's earliest inhabitants descended from the first human migrations out of Africa via the coastal route along southern Asia to the now-sunken landmasses of Sundaland and Sahul.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The first Austronesians reached the Philippines from Taiwan around 2200 BC, settling the Batanes Islands (where they built stone fortresses known as ijangs)<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and northern Luzon. Jade artifacts have been dated to 2000 BC,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> with lingling-o jade items made in Luzon with raw materials from Taiwan.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> By 1000 BC, the inhabitants of the archipelago had developed into four societies: hunter-gatherer tribes, warrior societies, highland plutocracies, and port principalities.<ref name="Legarda-2001">Template:Cite journal</ref>

Early states (900–1565)

File:Naturales 4.png

A couple portrayed in 1590's Early Spanish colonial period of the Philippines draped in gold

The earliest known surviving written record in the Philippines is the 900 AD Laguna Copperplate Inscription, which was written in Old Malay using the early Kawi script.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> By the 14th century, several large coastal settlements emerged as trading centers and became the focus of societal changes.<ref name="deGraaf-1977">Template:Cite book</ref> Some polities had exchanges with other states throughout Asia.<ref name="Junker-1999">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Trade with China began during the late Tang dynasty,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|url=https://www.nationalmuseum.gov.ph/2022/09/20/the-9th-to-10th-century-archaeological-evidence-of-maritime-relations-between-the-philippines-and-the-islands-of-southeast-asia/%7Ctitle=The 9th to 10th century archaeological evidence of maritime relations between the Philippines and the islands of Southeast Asia|publisher=National Museum of the Philippines|access-date=December 4, 2023|date=n.d.}}</ref><ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref> and expanded during the Song dynasty.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Pre-colonial Manila|url=http://malacanang.gov.ph/75832-pre-colonial-manila/%7Carchive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150724010336/http://malacanang.gov.ph/75832-pre-colonial-manila/%7Carchive-date=July 24, 2015|access-date=December 26, 2020|website=Malacañan Palace: Presidential Museum And Library}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> Throughout the second millennium AD, some polities were part of the tributary system of China.<ref name="Scott-1994">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp<ref name="Junker-1999" />Template:Rp With extensive trade and diplomacy, this brought Southern Chinese merchants and migrants from Southern Fujian,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> who would gradually settle and intermix in the Philippines. Indian cultural traits such as linguistic terms and religious practices began to spread in the Philippines during the 14th century, via the Indianized Hindu Majapahit Empire.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> By the 15th century, Islam was established in the Sulu Archipelago and spread from there.<ref name="deGraaf-1977" />

Polities founded in the Philippines between the 10th and 16th centuries include Maynila,<ref name="Ring-1996">Template:Cite book</ref> Tondo, Namayan, Pangasinan, Caboloan, Cebu, Butuan, Maguindanao, Lanao, Sulu, and Ma-i.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The early polities typically had a three-tier social structure: nobility, freemen, and dependent debtor-bondsmen.<ref name="Junker-1999" />Template:Rp<ref name="Wernstedt-1967">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp Among the nobility were leaders known as datus, who were responsible for ruling autonomous groups (barangays or dulohan).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> When the barangays banded together to form a larger settlement or a geographically looser alliance,<ref name="Junker-1999" />Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> their more-esteemed members would be recognized as a "paramount datu",<ref name="Newson">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp<ref name="Legarda-2001" /> rajah or sultan,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and would rule the community.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Population density is thought to have been low during the 14th to 16th centuries<ref name="Newson" />Template:Rp due to the frequency of typhoons and the Philippines' location on the Pacific Ring of Fire.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan arrived in 1521, claimed the islands for Spain, and was killed by Lapulapu's men in the Battle of Mactan.<ref name="Woods-2006">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp<ref name="Guillermo-2012">Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref>Template:Rp

Spanish and American colonial rule (1565–1934)

See caption

Manila, 1847

Unification and colonization by the Crown of Castile began when Spanish explorer Miguel López de Legazpi arrived from New Spain in 1565.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="deBorja-2005">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp Many Filipinos were brought to New Spain as slaves and forced crew,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> whereas many Latin Americans were brought to the Philippines as soldiers and colonists.<ref>"Orden de enviar hombres a Filipinas desde México" (Consejo de Indias España)(English Translation from Spanish original: "Royal Decree to the Count of Coruña, Viceroy of New Spain, informing him that, according to information from Captain Gabriel de Rivera who came from the Philippines, on a journey made by Governor Gonzalo Ronquillo to the Cagayan River some Spaniards were lost, and that to make up for this lack and populate these islands it was necessary to take up to two hundred men to them. The viceroy is ordered to attend to this request and send them from New Spain, in addition to another two hundred that were entrusted to him from Lisbon."</ref> The Philippines hosts the only Latin American established districts in Asia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Spanish Manila became the capital of the Captaincy General of the Philippines and the Spanish East Indies in 1571,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Spanish territories in Asia and the Pacific.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The Spanish invaded local states using the principle of divide and conquer,<ref name="Guillermo-2012" />Template:Rp bringing most of what is the present-day Philippines under one unified administration.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Disparate barangays were deliberately consolidated into towns, where Catholic missionaries could more easily convert their inhabitants to Christianity,<ref name="Abinales-2005">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> which was initially Syncretist.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Christianization by the Spanish friars occurred mostly across the settled lowlands over the course of time. From 1565 to 1821, the Philippines was governed as a territory of the Mexico City-based Viceroyalty of New Spain; it was then administered from Madrid after the Mexican War of Independence.<ref name="Halili-2004">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp Manila became the western hub of trans-Pacific trade<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> by Manila galleons built in Bicol and Cavite.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

During its rule, Spain nearly bankrupted its treasury quelling indigenous revolts<ref name="Halili-2004" />Template:Rp and defending against external military attacks,<ref name="Ooi-2004">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> including Moro piracy,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> a 17th-century war against the Dutch, 18th-century British occupation of Manila, and conflict with Muslims in the south.<ref name="Dolan-1991">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:RpTemplate:Undue weight inline

Administration of the Philippines was considered a drain on the economy of New Spain,<ref name="Ooi-2004" />Template:Rp and abandoning it or trading it for other territory was debated. This course of action was opposed because of the islands' economic potential, security, and the desire to continue religious conversion in the region.<ref name="Newson" />Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The colony survived on an annual subsidy from the Spanish crown<ref name="Ooi-2004" />Template:Rp averaging 250,000 pesos,<ref name="Newson" />Template:Rp usually paid as 75 tons of silver bullion from the Americas.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> British forces occupied Manila from 1762 to 1764 during the Seven Years' War, and Spanish rule was restored with the 1763 Treaty of Paris.<ref name="deBorja-2005" />Template:Rp The Spanish considered their war with the Muslims in Southeast Asia an extension of the Reconquista.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The Spanish–Moro conflict lasted for several hundred years; Spain conquered portions of Mindanao and Jolo during the last quarter of the 19th century,<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> and the Muslim Moro in the Sultanate of Sulu acknowledged Spanish sovereignty.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Photo of a large group of men on steps. Some are seated, and others are standing; several are wearing top hats.

Ilustrados in Madrid around 1890

Philippine ports opened to world trade during the 19th century, and Filipino society began to change.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Social identity changed, with the term Filipino encompassing all residents of the archipelago instead of solely referring to Spaniards born in the Philippines.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Revolutionary sentiment grew in 1872 after 200 locally recruited colonial troops and laborers alongside three activist Catholic priests were executed on questionable grounds.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> This inspired the Propaganda Movement, organized by Marcelo H. del Pilar, José Rizal, Graciano López Jaena, and Mariano Ponce, which advocated political reform in the Philippines.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Rizal was executed on December 30, 1896, for rebellion, and his death radicalized many who had been loyal to Spain.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Attempts at reform met with resistance; Andrés Bonifacio founded the Katipunan secret society, which sought independence from Spain through armed revolt, in 1892.<ref name="Halili-2004" />Template:Rp

The Katipunan Cry of Pugad Lawin began the Philippine Revolution in 1896.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Internal disputes led to the Tejeros Convention, at which Bonifacio lost his position and Emilio Aguinaldo was elected the new leader of the revolution.<ref name="Duka-2008">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp The 1897 Pact of Biak-na-Bato resulted in the Hong Kong Junta government in exile. The Spanish–American War began the following year, and reached the Philippines; Aguinaldo returned, resumed the revolution, and declared independence from Spain on June 12, 1898.<ref name="Abinales-2022">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp In December 1898, the islands were ceded by Spain to the United States with Puerto Rico and Guam after the Spanish–American War.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Spain ruled the Philippines for 333 years.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The First Philippine Republic was promulgated on January 21, 1899.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Lack of recognition by the United States led to an outbreak of hostilities that, after refusal by the U.S. on-scene military commander of a cease-fire proposal and a declaration of war by the nascent Republic,Template:Efn escalated into the Philippine–American War.<ref name=Nation18990504>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|last=Paterno|first=Pedro Alejandro|author-link=Pedro Paterno|title=Pedro Paterno's Proclamation of War|work=The Philippine-American War Documents|publisher=MSC Institute of Technology, Inc.|location=San Pablo City, Philippines|date=June 2, 1899|url=http://www.msc.edu.ph/centennial/pa990602.html%7Caccess-date=December 25, 2016}}</ref>

File:General Gregorio del Pilar and troops in Pampanga c1898.jpg

Filipino General Gregorio del Pilar and his troops in Pampanga around 1898, during the Philippine-American War

The war resulted in the deaths of 250,000 to 1 million civilians, primarily due to famine and disease.<ref name="Tucker-2009">Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> Many Filipinos were transported by the Americans to concentration camps, where thousands died.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> After the fall of the First Philippine Republic in 1902, an American civilian government was established with the Philippine Organic Act.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> American forces continued to secure and extend their control of the islands, suppressing an attempted extension of the Philippine Republic,<ref name="Duka-2008" />Template:Rp<ref name="Tucker-2009" /> securing the Sultanate of Sulu,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> establishing control of interior mountainous areas which had resisted Spanish conquest,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> and encouraging large-scale resettlement of Christians in once-predominantly-Muslim Mindanao.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Commonwealth and World War II (1935–1946)

Cultural developments in the Philippines strengthened a national identity,<ref name="Armes-1987">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Tofighian-2006">Template:Cite thesis</ref>Template:Rp and Tagalog began to take precedence over other local languages.<ref name="Abinales-2005" />Template:Rp Governmental functions were gradually given to Filipinos by the Taft Commission;<ref name="Ooi-2004" />Template:Rp the 1934 Tydings–McDuffie Act granted a ten-year transition to independence through the creation of the Commonwealth of the Philippines the following year,<ref name="Nadeau-2020">Template:Cite book</ref> with Manuel Quezon president and Sergio Osmeña vice president.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Quezon's priorities were defence, social justice, inequality, economic diversification, and national character.<ref name="Ooi-2004" />Template:Rp Filipino (a standardized variety of Tagalog) became the national language,<ref name="Thompson-2003">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp women's suffrage was introduced,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Gonzales |first=Cathrine |date=April 30, 2020 |title=Celebrating 83 years of women's suffrage in the Philippines |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1267381/celebrating-83-years-of-womens-suffrage-in-the-philippines |access-date=January 29, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200506193300/https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1267381/celebrating-83-years-of-womens-suffrage-in-the-philippines |archive-date=May 6, 2020}}</ref><ref name="Guillermo-2012" />Template:Rp and land reform was considered.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The introduction of women's suffrage during the Commonwealth period (1935–1946) signifies a progressive step towards gender equality in the Philippines. This gave women the right to vote and participate in the country's political processes.

Douglas MacArthur, Sergio Osmeña, and Osmeña's staff wading ashore in knee-deep water

General Douglas MacArthur and Sergio Osmeña (left) coming ashore during the Battle of Leyte on October 20, 1944

The Empire of Japan invaded the Philippines in December 1941 during World War II,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and the Second Philippine Republic was established as a puppet state governed by Jose P. Laurel.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Beginning in 1942, the Japanese occupation of the Philippines was opposed by large-scale underground guerrilla activity.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=The Guerrilla War |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/macarthur/sfeature/bataan_guerrilla.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170128153210/https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/macarthur/sfeature/bataan_guerrilla.html |archive-date=January 28, 2017 |access-date=February 24, 2011 |website=American Experience |publisher=PBS}}</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> Atrocities and war crimes were committed during the war, including the Bataan Death March and the Manila massacre.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The Philippine resistance and Allied troops defeated the Japanese in 1944 and 1945. Over one million Filipinos were estimated to have died by the end of the war.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> On October 11, 1945, the Philippines became a founding member of the United Nations.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Founding Member States |date=September 28, 2009 |url=https://www.un.org/depts/dhl/unms/founders.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091121135646/https://www.un.org/depts/dhl/unms/founders.shtml |archive-date=November 21, 2009 |publisher=United Nations}}</ref><ref name="Buhler-2001">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp On July 4, 1946, during the presidency of Manuel Roxas, the country's independence was recognized by the United States with the Treaty of Manila.<ref name="Buhler-2001" />Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Independence (1946–present)

File:Philippine Independence, July 4 1946.jpg

The raising of the Flag of the Philippines during the declaration of Philippine Independence on July 4, 1946

Efforts at post-war reconstruction and ending the Hukbalahap Rebellion succeeded during Ramon Magsaysay's presidency,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> but sporadic communist insurgency continued to flare up long afterward.<ref name="Tucker-2013">Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> Under Magsaysay's successor, Carlos P. Garcia, the government initiated a Filipino First policy which promoted Filipino-owned businesses.<ref name="Abinales-2005" />Template:Rp Succeeding Garcia, Diosdado Macapagal moved Independence Day from July 4 to June 12—the date of Emilio Aguinaldo's declaration—<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Republic Day |url=https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/featured/republic-day/about/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180225103921/https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/featured/republic-day/about/ |archive-date=February 25, 2018 |access-date=February 12, 2023 |website=Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines |at=II. Independence Day moved from July 4 to June 12}}</ref> and pursued a claim on eastern North Borneo.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

File:Marcos Declares Martial Law.jpg

The Declaration of Martial Law in the headlines of the Sunday Express

In 1965, Macapagal lost the presidential election to Ferdinand Marcos. Early in his presidency, Marcos began infrastructure projects funded mostly by foreign loans; this improved the economy, and contributed to his reelection in 1969.<ref name="Timberman-1991">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Near the end of his last constitutionally-permitted term, Marcos declared martial law on September 21, 1972<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Declaration of Martial Law |url=https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/featured/declaration-of-martial-law/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170708065018/http://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/featured/declaration-of-martial-law/ |archive-date=July 8, 2017 |access-date=September 1, 2020 |website=Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines}}</ref> using the specter of communism<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> and began to rule by decree;<ref name="TheEuropaWorldYear-2004">Template:Cite book</ref> the period was characterized by political repression, censorship, and human rights violations.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Monopolies controlled by Marcos's cronies were established in key industries,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> including logging<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and broadcasting;<ref name="Guillermo-2012" />Template:Rp a sugar monopoly led to a famine on the island of Negros.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=September 10, 1985 |title=UCAN Special Report: What's Behind the Negros Famine Crisis |language=en |work=Union of Catholic Asian News |url=https://www.ucanews.com/story-archive/?post_name=/1985/09/11/ucan-special-report-whats-behind-the-negros-famine-crisis&post_id=33345 |access-date=February 14, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160322040705/https://www.ucanews.com/story-archive/?post_name=/1985/09/11/ucan-special-report-whats-behind-the-negros-famine-crisis&post_id=33345 |archive-date=March 22, 2016}}</ref> With his wife, Imelda, Marcos was accused of corruption and embezzling billions of dollars of public funds.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Marcos's heavy borrowing early in his presidency resulted in economic crashes, exacerbated by an early 1980s recession where the economy contracted by 7.3 percent annually in 1984 and 1985.<ref name="Thompson-Batalla-2018">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

On August 21, 1983, opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr. (Marcos's chief rival) was assassinated on the tarmac at Manila International Airport.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Quinn-Judge |first=Paul |date=September 7, 1983 |title=Assassination of Aquino linked to power struggle for successor to Marcos |work=The Christian Science Monitor |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/1983/0907/090742.html |access-date=February 12, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150908131731/https://www.csmonitor.com/1983/0907/090742.html |archive-date=September 8, 2015}}</ref> Marcos called a snap presidential election in 1986<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> which proclaimed him the winner, but the results were widely regarded as fraudulent.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> The resulting protests led to the People Power Revolution,<ref name="LATimes-3DayRevolution">{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Fineman |first=Mark |date=February 27, 1986 |title=The 3-Day Revolution: How Marcos Was Toppled |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-02-27-mn-12085-story.html |access-date=February 12, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200825042718/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-02-27-mn-12085-story.html |archive-date=August 25, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Burgess |first=John |date=April 21, 1986 |title=Not All Filipinos Glad Marcos Is Out |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1986/04/21/not-all-filipinos-glad-marcos-is-out/d90b949f-da34-410a-be2e-95056958bcb2/ |access-date=February 12, 2023 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230212085658/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1986/04/21/not-all-filipinos-glad-marcos-is-out/d90b949f-da34-410a-be2e-95056958bcb2/ |archive-date=February 12, 2023}}</ref> which forced Marcos and his allies to flee to Hawaii. Aquino's widow, Corazon, was installed as president<ref name="LATimes-3DayRevolution" /> and a new constitution was promulgated.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

A huge ash cloud, seen from a distance

oclc=731752857}}</ref>

The return of democracy and government reforms which began in 1986 were hampered by national debt, government corruption, and coup attempts.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Timberman-1991" />Template:Rp A communist insurgency<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> and military conflict with Moro separatists persisted;<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Mydans |first=Seth |date=September 14, 1986 |title=Philippine Communists Are Spread Widely, but Not Thinly |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/09/14/weekinreview/philippine-communists-are-spread-widely-but-not-thinly.html |access-date=September 2, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150524190820/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/09/14/weekinreview/philippine-communists-are-spread-widely-but-not-thinly.html |archive-date=May 24, 2015}}</ref> the administration also faced a series of disasters, including the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in June 1991.<ref name=usgs/> Aquino was succeeded by Fidel V. Ramos, who liberalized the national economy with privatization and deregulation.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Ramos's economic gains were overshadowed by the onset of the 1997 Asian financial crisis.<ref name="NYTimes-Gargan-1997">{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Gargan |first=Edward A. |date=December 11, 1997 |title=Last Laugh for the Philippines; Onetime Joke Economy Avoids Much of Asia's Turmoil |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/12/11/business/last-laugh-for-philippines-onetime-joke-economy-avoids-much-asia-s-turmoil.html |access-date=January 25, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091228024452/https://www.nytimes.com/1997/12/11/business/last-laugh-for-philippines-onetime-joke-economy-avoids-much-asia-s-turmoil.html |archive-date=December 28, 2009}}</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> His successor, Joseph Estrada, prioritized public housing<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> but faced corruption allegations<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> which led to his overthrow by the 2001 EDSA Revolution and the succession of Vice President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on January 20, 2001.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Landler |first=Mark |date=February 9, 2001 |title=In Philippines, The Economy As Casualty; The President Ousted, a Credibility Repair Job |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/02/09/business/philippines-economy-casualty-president-ousted-credibility-repair-job.html |access-date=February 8, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100119090537/https://www.nytimes.com/2001/02/09/business/philippines-economy-casualty-president-ousted-credibility-repair-job.html |archive-date=January 19, 2010 |author-link1=Mark Landler}}</ref> Arroyo's nine-year administration was marked by economic growth,<ref name="CIAWorldFactBook" /> but was tainted by corruption and political scandals,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Dizon |first=David |date=August 4, 2010 |title=Corruption was Gloria's biggest mistake: survey |work=ABS-CBN News |url=http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/08/04/10/corruption-was-glorias-biggest-mistake-survey |access-date=April 15, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100806185404/http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/08/04/10/corruption-was-glorias-biggest-mistake-survey |archive-date=August 6, 2010}}</ref> including electoral fraud allegations during the 2004 presidential election.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Economic growth continued during Benigno Aquino III's administration, which advocated good governance and transparency.<ref name="Lum-Dolven-2014">Template:Cite report</ref>Template:Rp<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Lucas |first=Dax |date=June 8, 2012 |title=Aquino attributes growth to good governance |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://globalnation.inquirer.net/39227/aquino-attributes-growth-to-good-governance |access-date=September 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120610044835/https://globalnation.inquirer.net/39227/aquino-attributes-growth-to-good-governance |archive-date=June 10, 2012}}</ref> Aquino III signed a peace agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) resulting in the Bangsamoro Organic Law establishing an autonomous Bangsamoro region, but a shootout with MILF rebels in Mamasapano delayed passage of the law.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Clapano |first=Jose Rodel |date=February 3, 2016 |title=Congress buries Bangsamoro bill |work=The Philippine Star |url=https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2016/02/03/1549507/congress-buries-bangsamoro-bill |access-date=August 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180920054536/https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2016/02/03/1549507/congress-buries-bangsamoro-bill |archive-date=September 20, 2018}}</ref>

Growing public frustration with post-EDSA governance led to the 2016 election<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Alberto-Masakayan |first=Thea |date=May 27, 2016 |title=Duterte, Robredo win 2016 polls |work=ABS-CBN News |url=http://news.abs-cbn.com/halalan2016/nation/05/27/16/duterte-robredo-win-2016-polls/ |access-date=May 27, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160528141509/http://news.abs-cbn.com/halalan2016/nation/05/27/16/duterte-robredo-win-2016-polls/ |archive-date=May 28, 2016}}</ref> of populist Rodrigo Duterte,<ref name="CasipleEtAl-2016">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>{{#invoke:Cite|news |last=Garrido |first=Marco |date=May 5, 2022 |title=Analysis; Filipinos don't long for the Marcos era. Why is his son in the lead? |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/05/05/bongbong-marcos-philippines-election-may9-democracy-duterte/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505174059/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/05/05/bongbong-marcos-philippines-election-may9-democracy-duterte/ |archive-date=May 5, 2022}}</ref> whose presidency saw the decline of liberalism in the country albeit largely retaining liberal economic policies.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Beauchamp-2022" /> Among Duterte's priorities was aggressively increasing infrastructure spending to spur economic growth;<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Nicolas |first=Fiona |date=November 4, 2016 |title=Big projects underway in 'golden age' of infrastructure |work=CNN Philippines |url=https://cnnphilippines.com/news/2016/11/04/golden-age-infrastructure-Duterte-administration-Arthur-Tugade-Mark-Villar-Ernesto-Pernia-Vince-Dizon.html |access-date=September 13, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161107131039/https://cnnphilippines.com/news/2016/11/04/golden-age-infrastructure-Duterte-administration-Arthur-Tugade-Mark-Villar-Ernesto-Pernia-Vince-Dizon.html |archive-date=November 7, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=de Vera |first=Ben O. |date=August 6, 2020 |title=Build, Build, Build's 'new normal': 13 projects added, 8 removed |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://business.inquirer.net/304612/build-build-builds-new-normal-8-projects-added-13-removed |access-date=September 13, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200817063018/https://business.inquirer.net/304612/build-build-builds-new-normal-8-projects-added-13-removed |archive-date=August 17, 2020}}</ref> the enactment of the Bangsamoro Organic Law;<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Maitem |first=Jeoffrey |date=January 25, 2019 |title=It's Official: Majority in So. Philippines Backs Muslim Autonomy Law |language=en |work=BenarNews |url=https://www.benarnews.org/english/news/philippine/BOL-plebiscite-01252019131530.html |access-date=February 12, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190126214617/https://www.benarnews.org/english/news/philippine/BOL-plebiscite-01252019131530.html |archive-date=January 26, 2019}}</ref> an intensified crackdown on crime and communist insurgencies;<ref>{{#invoke:Cite|news |last=Nepomuceno |first=Priam |date=July 7, 2022 |title=Duterte admin made significant gains vs. NPA: AFP |language=en |work=Philippine News Agency |url=https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1178431 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220707084355/https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1178431 |archive-date=July 7, 2022}}</ref> and an anti-drug campaign that reduced drug proliferation<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Caliwan |first=Christopher Lloyd |date=March 30, 2022 |title=Over 24K villages 'drug-cleared' as of February: PDEA |language=en |work=Philippine News Agency |url=https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1171001 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220331184448/https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1171001 |archive-date=March 31, 2022}}</ref> but that has also led to extrajudicial killings.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Romero |first=Alexis |date=December 26, 2017 |title=Duterte gov't probing over 16,000 drug war-linked deaths as homicide, not EJK |work=The Philippine Star |url=https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/12/26/1771944/duterte-govt-probing-over-16000-drug-war-linked-deaths-homicide-not-ejk |access-date=February 12, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171226113810/https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/12/26/1771944/duterte-govt-probing-over-16000-drug-war-linked-deaths-homicide-not-ejk |archive-date=December 26, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Kabiling |first=Genalyn |date=March 5, 2021 |title=Duterte unfazed by drug war criticisms: 'You want me to go prison? So be it' |work=Manila Bulletin |url=https://mb.com.ph/2021/03/05/duterte-unfazed-by-drug-war-criticisms-you-want-me-to-go-prison-so-be-it/ |access-date=February 12, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210305123210/https://mb.com.ph/2021/03/05/duterte-unfazed-by-drug-war-criticisms-you-want-me-to-go-prison-so-be-it/ |archive-date=March 5, 2021}}</ref> In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic reached the Philippines,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=January 30, 2020 |title=Philippines confirms first case of new coronavirus |work=ABS-CBN News |url=https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/01/30/20/philippines-confirms-first-case-of-new-coronavirus |access-date=January 30, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200130083057/https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/01/30/20/philippines-confirms-first-case-of-new-coronavirus |archive-date=January 30, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Cordero |first=Ted |date=March 7, 2020 |title=DOH recommends declaration of public health emergency after COVID-19 local transmission |work=GMA News Online |url=https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/728715/doh-recommends-declaration-of-public-health-emergency-after-covid-19-local-transmission/story/ |access-date=March 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200308064057/https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/728715/doh-recommends-declaration-of-public-health-emergency-after-covid-19-local-transmission/story/ |archive-date=March 8, 2020}}</ref> necessitating nationwide lockdowns that caused a brief but severe economic recession.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Venzon |first=Cliff |date=January 28, 2021 |title=Philippines GDP shrinks 9.5% in 2020, worst since 1947 |work=Nikkei Asia |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Philippines-GDP-shrinks-9.5-in-2020-worst-since-1947 |access-date=January 31, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128061938/https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Philippines-GDP-shrinks-9.5-in-2020-worst-since-1947 |archive-date=January 28, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news |last1=Morales |first1=Neil Jerome |last2=Lema |first2=Karen |title=Philippines economy on recovery path, but policy seen remaining loose |url=https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/philippine-gdp-grows-77-yy-q4-beats-forecast-2022-01-27/ |access-date=October 19, 2024 |work=Reuters |date=January 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220204094028/https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/philippine-gdp-grows-77-yy-q4-beats-forecast-2022-01-27/ |archive-date=February 4, 2022}}</ref> Under a promise of continuing Duterte's policies,<ref name="Beauchamp-2022">Template:Cite news</ref> Marcos's son, Bongbong Marcos, ran with Duterte's daughter, Sara, and won the 2022 election.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=May 10, 2022 |title=Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos wins the Philippine presidency in a landslide |newspaper=The Economist |url=https://www.economist.com/asia/ferdinand-bongbong-marcos-wins-the-philippine-presidency-in-a-landslide/21809220 |access-date=June 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220510114935/https://www.economist.com/asia/ferdinand-bongbong-marcos-wins-the-philippine-presidency-in-a-landslide/21809220 |archive-date=May 10, 2022}}</ref> Marcos's renewal of a pro-US foreign policy, however, has been viewed as a reversal of Duterte's cordiality with China, and territorial disputes in the South China Sea have since escalated.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Geography

Map of the Philippines, color-coded by elevation

The Philippines is generally mountainous; uplands make up 65 percent of the country's total land area.<ref name="Wernstedt-1967" />Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite book Template:No ISBN</ref>

The Philippines is an archipelago of about 7,641 islands,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|date=June 4, 2019 |title=Know before you go: the Philippines |url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/partner-content-know-before-you-go-the-philippines |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210217161952/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/partner-content-know-before-you-go-the-philippines |archive-date=February 17, 2021 |access-date=April 4, 2021 |website=National Geographic}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=February 20, 2016 |title=More islands, more fun in PH |work=CNN Philippines |url=http://cnnphilippines.com/videos/2016/02/20/More-islands-more-fun-in-PH.html |access-date=July 5, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180620024729/http://cnnphilippines.com/videos/2016/02/20/More-islands-more-fun-in-PH.html |archive-date=June 20, 2018}}</ref> covering a total area (including inland bodies of water) of about Template:Convert.<ref name="NAMRIAGovPH-InfoMapper-1991">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Boquet-2017">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp<ref name="CIAWorldFactBook" />Template:Efn Stretching Template:Convert north to south,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Philippines – Places in the News |url=https://www.loc.gov/today/placesinthenews/archive/2008arch/20080624_philippines.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080625233633/https://www.loc.gov/today/placesinthenews/archive/2008arch/20080624_philippines.html |archive-date=June 25, 2008 |access-date=March 13, 2023 |publisher=Library of Congress}}</ref> from the South China Sea to the Celebes Sea,<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> the Philippines is bordered by the Philippine Sea to the east,<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia on August 20, 2009).</ref><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> and the Sulu Sea to the southwest.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Philippines – A country profile |url=https://www.eyeonasia.gov.sg/asean-countries/know/overview-of-asean-countries/philippines-a-country-profile/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926140334/https://www.eyeonasia.gov.sg/asean-countries/know/overview-of-asean-countries/philippines-a-country-profile/ |archive-date=September 26, 2020 |access-date=February 26, 2023 |website=Eye on Asia |publisher=Government of Singapore |language=en}}</ref> The country's 11 largest islands are Luzon, Mindanao, Samar, Negros, Palawan, Panay, Mindoro, Leyte, Cebu, Bohol and Masbate, about 95 percent of its total land area.<ref>Template:Cite book Template:No ISBN</ref> The Philippines' coastline measures Template:Convert, the world's fifth-longest,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Field Listing – Coastline |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2060.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070613004524/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2060.html |archive-date=June 13, 2007 |access-date=February 5, 2023 |website=The World Factbook |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |location=Washington, D.C.}}</ref> and the country's exclusive economic zone covers Template:Convert.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Fisheries, Ecosystems and Biodiversity; Catches by Taxon in the waters of Philippines |url=http://www.seaaroundus.org/data/#/eez/608?chart=catch-chart&dimension=taxon&measure=tonnage&limit=10 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230205081936/http://www.seaaroundus.org/data/%23/eez/608?chart=catch-chart&dimension=taxon&measure=tonnage&limit=10 |archive-date=February 5, 2023 |access-date=February 5, 2023 |publisher=Sea Around Us}}</ref>

Its highest mountain is Mount Apo on Mindanao, with an altitude of Template:Convert above sea level.<ref name="CIAWorldFactBook" /> The Philippines' longest river is the Cagayan River in northern Luzon, which flows for about Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> Manila Bay, on which is the capital city of Manila,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> is connected to Laguna de Bay<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Laguna de Bay |url=https://llda.gov.ph/laguna-de-bay/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200618040407/https://llda.gov.ph/laguna-de-bay/ |archive-date=June 18, 2020 |access-date=August 18, 2007 |publisher=Laguna Lake Development Authority}}</ref> (the country's largest lake) by the Pasig River.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|last1=Murphy |first1=Denis |last2=Anana |first2=Ted |date=2004 |title=Pasig River Rehabilitation Program |url=http://www.hic-net.org/document.asp?PID=197 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012123338/http://www.hic-net.org/document.asp?PID=197 |archive-date=October 12, 2007 |publisher=Habitat International Coalition}}</ref>

On the western fringes of the Pacific Ring of Fire, the Philippines has frequent seismic and volcanic activity.<ref name="Rodell-2002">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp The region is seismically active, and has been constructed by plates converging towards each other from multiple directions.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> About five earthquakes are recorded daily, although most are too weak to be felt.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The last major earthquakes were in 1976 in the Moro Gulf and in 1990 on Luzon.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> The Philippines has 23 active volcanoes; of them, Mayon, Taal, Canlaon, and Bulusan have the largest number of recorded eruptions.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Volcanoes of the Philippines |url=https://www.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/index.php/volcano-hazard/volcanoes-of-the-philippines |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170806190713/https://www.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/index.php/volcano-hazard/volcanoes-of-the-philippines |archive-date=August 6, 2017 |access-date=July 24, 2020 |publisher=Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology}}</ref><ref name="Boquet-2017" />Template:Rp

The country has valuable<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Esplanada |first=Jerry E. |date=March 1, 2012 |title=Philippines sits on $840B of mine—US |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://business.inquirer.net/47013/philippines-sits-on-840-b-of-mine—us |access-date=July 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120302194026/https://business.inquirer.net/47013/philippines-sits-on-840-b-of-mine%E2%80%94us |archive-date=March 2, 2012}}</ref> mineral deposits as a result of its complex geologic structure and high level of seismic activity.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> It is thought to have the world's second-largest gold deposits (after South Africa), large copper deposits,<ref name="NYTimes-Miners">{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Greenlees |first1=Donald |date=May 14, 2008 |title=Miners shun mineral wealth of the Philippines |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/14/business/worldbusiness/14iht-mine.1.12876764.html |access-date=July 18, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511224056/https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/14/business/worldbusiness/14iht-mine.1.12876764.html |archive-date=May 11, 2011}}</ref> and the world's largest deposits of palladium.<ref name="Inquirer-FirmSeesMetal">{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Cinco |first=Maricar |date=June 3, 2016 |title=Firm sees metal costlier than gold in Romblon sea |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/788940/firm-sees-metal-costlier-than-gold-in-romblon-sea |access-date=July 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200724163335/https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/788940/firm-sees-metal-costlier-than-gold-in-romblon-sea |archive-date=July 24, 2020}}</ref> The country's gold production in 2015 is 21 metric tonnes.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Other minerals include chromium, nickel, molybdenum, platinum, and zinc.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> However, poor management and law enforcement, opposition from indigenous communities, and past environmental damage have left these resources largely untapped.<ref name="NYTimes-Miners" /><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Schneider |first=Keith |date=June 8, 2017 |title=The Philippines, a nation rich in precious metals, encounters powerful opposition to mining |work=Mongabay |url=https://news.mongabay.com/2017/06/the-philippines-a-nation-rich-in-precious-metals-encounters-powerful-opposition-to-mining/ |access-date=July 18, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170710043841/https://news.mongabay.com/2017/06/the-philippines-a-nation-rich-in-precious-metals-encounters-powerful-opposition-to-mining/ |archive-date=July 10, 2017}}</ref>

Biodiversity

Water buffalo with large, curved horns, seen from above

The carabao is the national animal of the Philippines. It symbolizes, strength, power, efficiency, perseverance and hard work.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The Philippines is a megadiverse country,<ref name="Berba-Matias-2022">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite report</ref> with some of the world's highest rates of discovery and endemism (67 percent).<ref name="OECD-2017April">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> With an estimated 13,500 plant species in the country (3,500 of which are endemic),<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Philippine rain forests have an array of flora:<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|date=February 18, 2014 |title=Hub of Life: Species Diversity in the Philippines |url=http://fpe.ph/biodiversity.html/view/hub-of-life-species-diversity-in-the-philippines |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150916011731/http://fpe.ph/biodiversity.html/view/hub-of-life-species-diversity-in-the-philippines |archive-date=September 16, 2015 |access-date=July 5, 2020 |publisher=Foundation for the Philippine Environment}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Taguinod |first=Fioro |date=November 20, 2008 |title=Rare flower species found only in northern Philippines |language=en |work=GMANews.TV |url=http://www.gmanews.tv/story/134682/Rare-flower-species-found-only-in-northern-Philippines |access-date=February 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219210524/http://www.gmanews.tv/story/134682/Rare-flower-species-found-only-in-northern-Philippines |archive-date=February 19, 2009}}</ref> about 3,500 species of trees,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> 8,000 flowering plant species, 1,100 ferns, and 998 orchid species<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> have been identified.<ref name="Sajise-2010">Template:Cite book</ref> The Philippines has 167 terrestrial mammals (102 endemic species), 235 reptiles (160 endemic species), 99 amphibians (74 endemic species), 686 birds (224 endemic species),<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and over 20,000 insect species.<ref name="Sajise-2010" />

As an important part of the Coral Triangle ecoregion,<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Leman |first=Jennifer |date=February 11, 2019 |title=What Is the Coral Triangle? |work=Live Science |url=https://www.livescience.com/64738-coral-triangle.html |access-date=July 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200429190233/https://www.livescience.com/64738-coral-triangle.html |archive-date=April 29, 2020}}</ref> Philippine waters have unique, diverse marine life<ref name="CalAcademyOrg-2015">{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Bowling |first1=Haley |title=Over 100 New Marine Species Discovered in the Philippines |url=https://www.calacademy.org/explore-science/over-100-new-marine-species-discovered-in-the-philippines |access-date=April 2, 2023 |work=California Academy of Sciences |date=July 17, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906071328/https://www.calacademy.org/explore-science/over-100-new-marine-species-discovered-in-the-philippines |archive-date=September 6, 2015 |language=en}}</ref> and the world's greatest diversity of shore-fish species.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The country has over 3,200 fish species (121 endemic).<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|last1=Ani |first1=Princess Alma B. |last2=Castillo |first2=Monica B. |date=March 18, 2020 |title=Revisiting the State of Philippine Biodiversity And The Legislation on Access and Benefit Sharing |url=https://ap.fftc.org.tw/article/1836 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201114110925/https://ap.fftc.org.tw/article/1836 |archive-date=November 14, 2020 |access-date=March 20, 2023 |website=FFTC Agricultural Policy Platform (FFTC-AP) |publisher=Food and Fertilizer Technology Center for the Asian and Pacific Region |at=The Philippine Biodiversity |language=en |location=Taipei}}</ref> Philippine waters sustain the cultivation of fish, crustaceans, oysters, and seaweeds.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=National Aquaculture Sector Overview: Philippines |url=http://www.fao.org/fishery/countrysector/naso_philippines/en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081010173033/http://www.fao.org/fishery/countrysector/naso_philippines/en |archive-date=October 10, 2008 |access-date=August 17, 2020 |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization}}</ref><ref>Template:Cite report</ref>

Eight major types of forests are distributed throughout the Philippines: dipterocarp, beach forest,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> pine forest, molave forest, lower montane forest, upper montane (or mossy forest), mangroves, and ultrabasic forest.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> According to official estimates, the Philippines had Template:Convert of forest cover in 2023.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Domingo |first1=Katrina |title=DENR targets to reforest 1 to 2 million hectares in PH |url=https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/27/23/denr-targets-to-reforest-1-to-2-million-hectares-in-ph |access-date=August 30, 2023 |work=ABS-CBN News |date=June 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230627063837/https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/27/23/denr-targets-to-reforest-1-to-2-million-hectares-in-ph |archive-date=June 27, 2023}}</ref> Logging had been systemized during the American colonial period<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and deforestation continued after independence, accelerating during the Marcos presidency due to unregulated logging concessions.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Forest cover declined from 70 percent of the Philippines' total land area in 1900 to about 18.3 percent in 1999.<ref name="FAO-Forests">Template:Cite report</ref> Rehabilitation efforts have had marginal success.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref>

The Philippines is a priority hotspot for biodiversity conservation;<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Philippines |url=https://www.cepf.net/our-work/biodiversity-hotspots/philippines |publisher=Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund |access-date=April 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190205015021/https://www.cepf.net/our-work/biodiversity-hotspots/philippines |archive-date=February 5, 2019 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Berba-Matias-2022" /> it has more than 200 protected areas,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Establishment and Management of National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) (as of October 31, 2011) |url=http://www.pawb.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=120:establishing-and-managing-protected-areas&catid=58:protected-area-management |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111201105841/http://www.pawb.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=120:establishing-and-managing-protected-areas&catid=58:protected-area-management |archive-date=December 1, 2011 |access-date=February 22, 2023 |publisher=Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau}}</ref> which was expanded to Template:Convert Template:As of.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=List of Protected Areas |url=https://bmb.gov.ph/index.php/list-of-protected-areas |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230222202956/https://bmb.gov.ph/index.php/list-of-protected-areas |archive-date=February 22, 2023 |access-date=February 22, 2023 |publisher=Biodiversity Management Bureau}}</ref> Three sites in the Philippines have been included on the UNESCO World Heritage List: the Tubbataha Reef in the Sulu Sea,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/653/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060210154057/https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/653/ |archive-date=February 10, 2006 |access-date=August 17, 2020 |publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre}}</ref> the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Puerto-Princesa Subterranean River National Park |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/652 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051119122807/https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/652 |archive-date=November 19, 2005 |access-date=July 18, 2020 |publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre}}</ref> and the Mount Hamiguitan Wildlife Sanctuary.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Philippines – UNESCO World Heritage Convention |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/ph |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230223081604/https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/ph |archive-date=February 23, 2023 |access-date=March 3, 2023 |publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre |language=en}}</ref>

Climate

File:Thunderstorms-Philippines.jpg

Evening thunderstorms bringing rain over the Philippines is common from June to November.

The Philippines has a tropical maritime climate which is usually hot and humid. There are three seasons: a hot dry season from March to May, a rainy season from June to November, and a cool dry season from December to February.<ref name="LocGov-Philippines" /> The southwest monsoon (known as the Template:Lang) lasts from May to October, and the northeast monsoon (Template:Lang) lasts from November to April.<ref name="Carating-2014">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp The coolest month is January, and the warmest is May. Temperatures at sea level across the Philippines tend to be in the same range, regardless of latitude; average annual temperature is around Template:Convert but is Template:Convert in Baguio, Template:Convert above sea level.<ref name="PAGASA-Climate">{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Climate of the Philippines |url=http://bagong.pagasa.dost.gov.ph/information/climate-philippines |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180418140425/http://bagong.pagasa.dost.gov.ph/information/climate-philippines |archive-date=April 18, 2018 |access-date=July 24, 2020 |publisher=Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration}}</ref> The country's average humidity is 82 percent.<ref name="Carating-2014" />Template:Rp Annual rainfall is as high as Template:Convert on the mountainous east coast, but less than Template:Convert in some sheltered valleys.<ref name="LocGov-Philippines" />

The Philippine Area of Responsibility has 19 typhoons in a typical year,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> usually from July to October;<ref name="LocGov-Philippines">{{#invoke:cite|web|date=March 2005 |title=Country Profile: Philippines |url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Philippines.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050717172656/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Philippines.pdf |archive-date=July 17, 2005 |access-date=February 4, 2023 |publisher=Library of Congress – Federal Research Division |location=Washington, D.C.}}</ref> eight or nine of them make landfall.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Digital Typhoon: Monthly Typhoon Tracking Charts (Active Typhoon Maps) |url=http://agora.ex.nii.ac.jp/digital-typhoon/reference/monthly/index.html.en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080421190314/http://agora.ex.nii.ac.jp/digital-typhoon/reference/monthly/index.html.en |archive-date=April 21, 2008 |access-date=April 12, 2023 |publisher=KITAMOTO Asanobu / National Institute of Informatics |language=en}}</ref> The wettest recorded typhoon to hit the Philippines dropped Template:Convert in Baguio from July 14 to 18, 1911.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The country is among the world's ten most vulnerable to climate change.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Government and politics

Large white-and-red building on a river

Malacañang Palace is the president's official residence.

The Philippines has a democratic government, a constitutional republic with a presidential system.<ref name="Rose-Ackerman">Template:Cite journal</ref> The president is head of state and head of government,<ref name="Banlaoi-2009"/> and is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces.<ref name="Rose-Ackerman" /> The president is elected through direct election by the citizens of the Philippines for a six-year term.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The president appoints and presides over the cabinet and officials of various national government agencies and institutions.<ref name="Lazo-2009">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp The bicameral Congress is composed of the Senate (the upper house, with members elected to a six-year term) and the House of Representatives, the lower house, with members elected to a three-year term.<ref name="CarterCenterOrg-2010-Elections">Template:Cite report</ref>

Senators are elected at-large,<ref name="CarterCenterOrg-2010-Elections" /> and representatives are elected from legislative districts and party lists.<ref name="Lazo-2009" />Template:Rp Judicial authority is vested in the Supreme Court, composed of a chief justice and fourteen associate justices,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> who are appointed by the president from nominations submitted by the Judicial and Bar Council.<ref name="Rose-Ackerman" />

Attempts to change the government to a federal, unicameral, or parliamentary government have been made since the Ramos administration.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Philippine politics tends to be dominated by well-known families, such as political dynasties or celebrities,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> and party switching is widely practiced.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Corruption is significant,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> attributed by some historians to the Spanish colonial period's padrino system.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The Roman Catholic church exerts considerable but waning<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Strother |first1=Jason |title=Power of the Catholic Church slipping in Philippines |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-Pacific/2013/0306/Power-of-the-Catholic-Church-slipping-in-Philippines |access-date=July 25, 2023 |work=The Christian Science Monitor |date=March 6, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130307075323/https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-Pacific/2013/0306/Power-of-the-Catholic-Church-slipping-in-Philippines |archive-date=March 7, 2013}}</ref> influence in political affairs, although a constitutional provision for the separation of Church and State exists.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Foreign relations

Color-coded world map

Philippine diplomatic missions worldwide

A founding and active member of the United Nations,<ref name="Buhler-2001" />Template:Rp the Philippines has been a non-permanent member of the Security Council.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=The Philippines and the UN Security Council |url=http://www.un.int/philippines/security_council/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030423092237/http://www.un.int/philippines/security_council/ |archive-date=April 23, 2003 |access-date=February 3, 2023 |publisher=Permanent Mission of the Republic of the Philippines to the United Nations}}</ref> The country participates in peacekeeping missions, particularly in East Timor.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|last1=Morada |first1=Noel |title=Contributor Profile: The Philippines |url=https://www.ipinst.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/ipi-pub-ppp-Philippines.pdf |publisher=International Peace Institute |pages=1–4 |access-date=May 12, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220321073939/https://www.ipinst.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/ipi-pub-ppp-Philippines.pdf |archive-date=March 21, 2022 |date=December 2013}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=August 30, 2014 |title=In the know: Filipino peacekeepers |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://globalnation.inquirer.net/110218/in-the-know-filipino-peacekeepers |access-date=January 1, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140831201046/https://globalnation.inquirer.net/110218/in-the-know-filipino-peacekeepers |archive-date=August 31, 2014}}</ref> The Philippines is a founding and active member of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations)<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=ASEAN Structure |url=http://www.summit99.ops.gov.ph/asean_structure.htm |website=3rd ASEAN Informal Summit |publisher=Office of the Press Secretary |date=1999 |access-date=March 19, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030109213038/http://www.summit99.ops.gov.ph/asean_structure.htm |archive-date=January 9, 2003 }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and a member of the East Asia Summit,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=East Asia Summit (EAS) |url=https://www.dfat.gov.au/international-relations/regional-architecture/eas/Pages/east-asia-summit-eas |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200726165059/https://www.dfat.gov.au/international-relations/regional-architecture/eas/Pages/east-asia-summit-eas |archive-date=July 26, 2020 |access-date=July 26, 2020 |website=Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade |publisher=Australian Government}}</ref> the Group of 24,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=International Economic Cooperation: Intergovernmental Group of Twenty-Four (on International Monetary Affairs and Development (G-24) |url=https://www.bsp.gov.ph/Pages/AboutTheBank/WhoWeAre/MandateFunctionsAndResponsibilities/InternationalEconomicCooperation/InternationalEconomicCooperationIGTF.aspx |access-date=July 17, 2022 |publisher=Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221229140058/https://www.bsp.gov.ph/Pages/AboutTheBank/WhoWeAre/MandateFunctionsAndResponsibilities/InternationalEconomicCooperation/InternationalEconomicCooperationIGTF.aspx |archive-date=December 29, 2022}}</ref> and the Non-Aligned Movement.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=About NAM |url=http://cns.miis.edu/nam/index.php/site/about |website=Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Disarmament Database |publisher=James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey |access-date=April 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200928052527/http://cns.miis.edu/nam/index.php/site/about |archive-date=September 28, 2020}}</ref> The country has sought to obtain observer status in the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation since 2003,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Lee-Brago |first1=Pia |title=RP seeks observer status in OIC |url=https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2003/05/30/208100/rp-seeks-observer-status-oic |access-date=March 22, 2023 |work=The Philippine Star |date=May 30, 2003 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322181401/https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2003/05/30/208100/rp-seeks-observer-status-oic |archive-date=March 22, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|last1=Sevilla |first1=Henelito A. Jr. |title=The Philippines' Elusive Quest for Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) Observer Status |url=https://www.mei.edu/publications/philippines-elusive-quest-organization-islamic-conference-oic-observer-status |publisher=Middle East Institute |access-date=March 22, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181121161216/https://www.mei.edu/publications/philippines-elusive-quest-organization-islamic-conference-oic-observer-status |archive-date=November 21, 2018 |language=en |date=May 20, 2013}}</ref> and was a member of SEATO.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> Over 10 million Filipinos live and work in 200 countries,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite report</ref> giving the Philippines soft power.<ref name="Thompson-Batalla-2018" />Template:Rp

During the 1990s, the Philippines began to seek economic liberalization and free trade<ref name="ILOOrg-2019">Template:Cite report</ref>Template:Rp to help spur foreign direct investment.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Venzon |first1=Cliff |title=Philippines eases Asia's toughest FDI rules with new retail entry law |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Retail/Philippines-eases-Asia-s-toughest-FDI-rules-with-new-retail-entry-law |access-date=April 2, 2023 |work=Nikkei Asia |date=January 17, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220117055231/https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Retail/Philippines-eases-Asia-s-toughest-FDI-rules-with-new-retail-entry-law |archive-date=January 17, 2022}}</ref> It is a member of the World Trade Organization<ref name="ILOOrg-2019" />Template:Rp and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Philippines |url=https://www.apec.org/groups/committee-on-trade-and-investment/market-access-group/ntm/philippines |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220717043955/https://www.apec.org/groups/committee-on-trade-and-investment/market-access-group/ntm/philippines |archive-date=July 17, 2022 |access-date=July 17, 2022 |publisher=Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation}}</ref> The Philippines entered into the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement in 2010<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership free trade agreement (FTA) in 2023.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Tan |first1=Alyssa Nicole O. |title=Senate concurs with Philippines' RCEP ratification |url=https://www.bworldonline.com/top-stories/2023/02/22/506166/senate-concurs-with-philippines-rcep-ratification/ |access-date=March 28, 2023 |work=BusinessWorld |date=February 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230223061750/https://www.bworldonline.com/top-stories/2023/02/22/506166/senate-concurs-with-philippines-rcep-ratification/ |archive-date=February 23, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|title=Philippines Ratifies RCEP Agreement: Opportunities for Businesses |url=https://www.aseanbriefing.com/news/philippines-ratifies-rcep-agreement-opportunities-for-businesses/ |access-date=March 28, 2023 |work=ASEAN Briefing |publisher=Dezan Shira & Associates |date=March 22, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322221610/https://www.aseanbriefing.com/news/philippines-ratifies-rcep-agreement-opportunities-for-businesses/ |archive-date=March 22, 2023 |language=en}}</ref> Through ASEAN, the Philippines has signed FTAs with China, India, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.<ref name="ILOOrg-2019" />Template:Rp The country has bilateral FTAs with Japan, South Korea,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Mangaluz |first1=Jean |title=PH signs free trade agreement with South Korea |url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1828353/ph-signs-free-trade-agreement-with-sokor |access-date=September 20, 2023 |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |date=September 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230907140509/https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1828353/ph-signs-free-trade-agreement-with-sokor |archive-date=September 7, 2023 |language=en}}</ref> and four European states: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.<ref name="ILOOrg-2019" />Template:Rp

File:2 Filipino soldiers painting friendship flags 070217-N-4198C-001 0V7HO.jpg

Filipino soldiers painting a U.S. and Philippine flag

The Philippines has a long relationship with the United States, involving economics, security, and interpersonal relations.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|date=December 15, 2016 |title=U.S. Relations With the Philippines |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2794.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170122194536/https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2794.htm |archive-date=January 22, 2017 |access-date=July 6, 2020 |publisher=U.S. Department of State. Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs}}</ref> The Philippines' location serves an important role in the United States' island chain strategy in the West Pacific;<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> a Mutual Defense Treaty between the two countries was signed in 1951, and was supplemented with the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement and the 2016 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The country supported American policies during the Cold War and participated in the Korean and Vietnam wars.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In 2003, the Philippines was designated a major non-NATO ally.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Garamone |first=Jim |date=May 19, 2003 |title=Philippines to Become Major non-NATO Ally, Bush Says |work=American Forces Press Service |publisher=United States Department of Defense |url=https://archive.defense.gov/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=28968 |access-date=August 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200809092207/https://archive.defense.gov/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=28968 |archive-date=August 9, 2020}}</ref> Under President Duterte, ties with the United States weakened in favor of improved relations with China and Russia.<ref name="DeCastro-2022">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|last1=Chang |first1=Felix K. |title=Hot and Cold: The Philippines' Relations with China (and the United States) |url=https://www.fpri.org/article/2021/07/hot-and-cold-the-philippines-relations-with-china-and-the-united-states/ |website=Policy Commons |publisher=Foreign Policy Research Institute |access-date=April 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230430125452/https://policycommons.net/artifacts/1805035/hot-and-cold/2537128/ |archive-date=April 30, 2023 |date=July 7, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|last1=Heydarian |first1=Richard Javad |title=Duterte's Pivot to Russia |url=https://amti.csis.org/dutertes-pivot-to-russia/ |website=Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative |publisher=Center for Strategic and International Studies |access-date=April 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191019023259/https://amti.csis.org/dutertes-pivot-to-russia/ |archive-date=October 19, 2019 |date=October 17, 2019}}</ref> The Philippines relies heavily on the United States for its external defense;<ref name="Lum-Dolven-2014" />Template:Rp the U.S. has made regular assurances to defend the Philippines,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Ismael |first1=Javier Joe |last2=Baroña |first2=Franco Jose C. |last3=Mendoza |first3=Red |title=US to 'invoke' defense pact in attack on PH |url=https://www.manilatimes.net/2023/10/01/news/national/us-to-invoke-defense-pact-in-attack-on-ph/1912561 |access-date=October 24, 2023 |work=The Manila Times |date=October 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231001012654/https://www.manilatimes.net/2023/10/01/news/national/us-to-invoke-defense-pact-in-attack-on-ph/1912561 |archive-date=October 1, 2023 |language=en}}</ref> including the South China Sea.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Moriyasu |first=Ken |date=January 29, 2021 |title=US vows to defend Philippines, including in South China Sea |work=Nikkei Asia |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/South-China-Sea/US-vows-to-defend-Philippines-including-in-South-China-Sea |access-date=February 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128202512/https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/South-China-Sea/US-vows-to-defend-Philippines-including-in-South-China-Sea |archive-date=January 28, 2021}}</ref>

Since 1975, the Philippines has valued its relations with China<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>—its top trading partner,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Cacho |first1=Katlene O. |title=China leads PH export, import market; envoy vows to deepen ties with Cebu |url=https://www.sunstar.com.ph/cebu/business/china-leads-ph-export-import-market-envoy-vows-to-deepen-ties-with-cebu |access-date=November 2, 2023 |work=SunStar |date=October 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231102194950/https://www.sunstar.com.ph/cebu/business/china-leads-ph-export-import-market-envoy-vows-to-deepen-ties-with-cebu |archive-date=November 2, 2023 |language=en}}</ref> and cooperates significantly with the country.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="DeCastro-2022" /> Japan is the biggest bilateral contributor of official development assistance to the Philippines;<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Brutas |first=Ma Karen |date=November 18, 2016 |title=Top development aid donors to the Philippines 2015 |work=Devex |url=https://www.devex.com/news/top-development-aid-donors-to-the-philippines-2015-89091 |access-date=July 30, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161119112216/https://www.devex.com/news/top-development-aid-donors-to-the-philippines-2015-89091 |archive-date=November 19, 2016}}</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> although some tension exists because of World War II, much animosity has faded.<ref name="Dolan-1991" />Template:Rp Historical and cultural ties continue to affect relations with Spain.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Santos |first=Matikas |date=September 15, 2014 |title=PH-Spain bilateral relations in a nutshell |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=http://globalnation.inquirer.net/111122/ph-spain-bilateral-relations-in-a-nutshell-2 |access-date=July 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140917001506/http://globalnation.inquirer.net/111122/ph-spain-bilateral-relations-in-a-nutshell-2 |archive-date=September 17, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|title=Madrid Embassy commemorates PHL-Spain relations' anniversary |url=https://businessmirror.com.ph/2022/11/17/madrid-embassy-commemorates-phl-spain-relations-anniversary/ |access-date=May 10, 2023 |work=BusinessMirror |date=November 17, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221116165209/https://businessmirror.com.ph/2022/11/17/madrid-embassy-commemorates-phl-spain-relations-anniversary/ |archive-date=November 16, 2022}}</ref> Relations with Middle Eastern countries are shaped by the high number of Filipinos working in those countries,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Berlinger |first1=Joshua |last2=Sharma |first2=Akanksha |date=January 7, 2020 |title=The Philippines is particularly vulnerable to any Middle Eastern conflict. Here's why |work=CNN |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2020/01/07/asia/philippines-middle-east-tensions-intl-hnk/index.html |access-date=August 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200107090831/https://edition.cnn.com/2020/01/07/asia/philippines-middle-east-tensions-intl-hnk/index.html |archive-date=January 7, 2020}}</ref> and by issues related to the Muslim minority in the Philippines;<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> concerns have been raised about domestic abuse and war affecting the approximately 2.5 million overseas Filipino workers in the region.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Tarrazona |first=Noel T. |date=October 17, 2018 |title=For skilled Filipinos, Middle East remains a career destination |work=Al Arabiya |url=https://english.alarabiya.net/en/features/2018/10/17/For-skilled-Filipinos-Middle-East-continues-to-remain-a-career-destination |access-date=August 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201002122006/https://english.alarabiya.net/en/features/2018/10/17/For-skilled-Filipinos-Middle-East-continues-to-remain-a-career-destination |archive-date=October 2, 2020}}</ref>

The Philippines has claims in the Spratly Islands which overlap with claims by China, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> The largest of its controlled islands is Thitu Island, which contains the Philippines' smallest town.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Pitlo |first=Lucio Blanco III |date=May 27, 2020 |title=Philippines bolsters posture in South China Sea after navy ship docks at new Spratly Islands port |work=South China Morning Post |url=https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3086253/philippines-bolsters-posture-south-china-sea-after-navy-ship |access-date=August 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200527030224/https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3086253/philippines-bolsters-posture-south-china-sea-after-navy-ship |archive-date=May 27, 2020}}</ref> The 2012 Scarborough Shoal standoff, after China seized the shoal from the Philippines, led to an international arbitration case<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> which the Philippines eventually won;<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=July 12, 2016 |title=PH wins maritime arbitration case vs. China |work=CNN Philippines |url=https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2016/07/12/PH-wins-maritime-arbitration-case-vs-China.html |access-date=November 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160713171115/https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2016/07/12/PH-wins-maritime-arbitration-case-vs-China.html |archive-date=July 13, 2016}}</ref> China rejected the result,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Phillips |first1=Tom |last2=Holmes |first2=Oliver |last3=Bowcott |first3=Owen |date=July 12, 2016 |title=Beijing rejects tribunal's ruling in South China Sea case |language=en |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/12/philippines-wins-south-china-sea-case-against-china |access-date=November 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160712120247/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/12/philippines-wins-south-china-sea-case-against-china |archive-date=July 12, 2016}}</ref> and made the shoal a prominent symbol of the broader dispute.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Carpio |first=Antonio T. |author-link=Antonio Carpio |date=July 23, 2020 |title=Scarborough Shoal – a redline |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://opinion.inquirer.net/132035/scarborough-shoal-a-redline |access-date=August 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200724111626/https://opinion.inquirer.net/132035/scarborough-shoal-a-redline |archive-date=July 24, 2020}}</ref>

China has rejected new Philippine maritime laws aimed at strengthening sovereignty in the South China Sea, stating they infringe on Chinese territorial claims and vowing to defend its interests in contested areas.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Military

Gray ship

BRP Jose Rizal (FF-150) is the lead ship of her class of Philippine Navy guided missile frigates.

The volunteer Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) consist of three branches: the Philippine Air Force, the Philippine Army, and the Philippine Navy.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=AFP Organization |url=http://www.afp.mil.ph/org3.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050307023417/http://www.afp.mil.ph/org3.html |archive-date=March 7, 2005 |access-date=July 6, 2020 |publisher=Armed Forces of the Philippines}}</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Civilian security is handled by the Philippine National Police under the Department of the Interior and Local Government.<ref>Template:Cite PH act</ref> The AFP had a total manpower of around 280,000 Template:As of, of which 130,000 were active military personnel, 100,000 were reserves, and 50,000 were paramilitaries.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Baclig |first=Cristina Eloisa |date=January 20, 2022 |title=PH 51st on list of world's most powerful militaries |language=en |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1542851/ph-51st-on-list-of-worlds-most-powerful-militaries-2 |access-date=February 20, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220120053550/https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1542851/ph-51st-on-list-of-worlds-most-powerful-militaries-2 |archive-date=January 20, 2022}}</ref>

In 2023, Template:Currency (1.4 percent of GDP) was spent on the Philippine military.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news |last1=Guild |first1=James |title=The Philippines' $35 Billion Military Modernization Plan, Explained |url=https://thediplomat.com/2024/05/the-philippines-35-billion-military-modernization-plan-explained/ |access-date=October 21, 2024 |work=The Diplomat |date=May 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240517144924/https://thediplomat.com/2024/05/the-philippines-35-billion-military-modernization-plan-explained/ |archive-date=May 17, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news |title=How does the Philippines compare in the region in terms of military expenditure as share of GDP? |url=https://www.bworldonline.com/infographics/2024/08/20/614989/how-does-the-philippines-compare-in-the-region-in-terms-of-military-expenditure-as-share-of-gdp/ |access-date=October 21, 2024 |work=BusinessWorld |date=August 20, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820024146/https://www.bworldonline.com/infographics/2024/08/20/614989/how-does-the-philippines-compare-in-the-region-in-terms-of-military-expenditure-as-share-of-gdp/ |archive-date=August 20, 2024}}</ref> Most of the country's defense spending is on the Philippine Army, which leads operations against internal threats such as communist and Muslim separatist insurgencies; its preoccupation with internal security contributed to the decline of Philippine naval capability which began during the 1970s.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> A military modernization program began in 1995<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and expanded in 2012 to build a more capable defense system.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=December 11, 2012 |title=Aquino signs revised AFP Modernization Act |work=The Philippine Star |url=https://www.philstar.com/pilipino-star-ngayon/headlines/2012/12/11/884844/aquino-signs-revised-afp-modernization-act |access-date=March 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220421114944/https://www.philstar.com/pilipino-star-ngayon/headlines/2012/12/11/884844/aquino-signs-revised-afp-modernization-act |archive-date=April 21, 2022}}</ref>

The Philippines has long struggled against local insurgencies, separatism, and terrorism.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Croissant-2017">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=GTD Search Results; Philippines |url=https://www.start.umd.edu/gtd/search/Results.aspx?page=1&casualties_type=&casualties_max=&country=160&charttype=line&chart=overtime&ob=GTDID&od=desc&expanded=yes |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230315083451/https://www.start.umd.edu/gtd/search/Results.aspx?page=1&casualties_type=&casualties_max=&country=160&charttype=line&chart=overtime&ob=GTDID&od=desc&expanded=yes |archive-date=March 15, 2023 |access-date=March 15, 2023 |website=Global Terrorism Database |publisher=University of Maryland}}</ref> Bangsamoro's largest separatist organizations, the Moro National Liberation Front and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, signed final peace agreements with the government in 1996 and 2014 respectively.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=MMP: Moro National Liberation Front |url=https://cisac.fsi.stanford.edu/mappingmilitants/profiles/moro-national-liberation-front#text_block_20212 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221101073611/https://cisac.fsi.stanford.edu/mappingmilitants/profiles/moro-national-liberation-front |archive-date=November 1, 2022 |access-date=February 14, 2023 |website=Center for International Security and Cooperation |publisher=Stanford University |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Esguerra |first1=Christian V. |author-link=Christian Esguerra |last2=Burgonio |first2=TJ |date=March 28, 2014 |title=Philippines, MILF sign peace agreement |language=en |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/589706/bangsamoro-rising |access-date=February 14, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140328040452/https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/589706/bangsamoro-rising |archive-date=March 28, 2014}}</ref> Other, more-militant groups such as Abu Sayyaf and Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters<ref name="CTCSentinel-BIFF">Template:Cite journal</ref> have kidnapped foreigners for ransom, particularly in the Sulu Archipelago<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> and Maguindanao,<ref name="CTCSentinel-BIFF" /> but their presence has been reduced.<ref>Template:Cite book Template:No ISBN</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Nepomuceno |first=Priam |date=October 10, 2020 |title=PH Army keen to end terror threat with arrest of 3 terrorists |work=Philippine News Agency |url=https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1118108 |access-date=December 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201030144543/https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1118108 |archive-date=October 30, 2020}}</ref> The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its military wing, the New People's Army (NPA), have been waging guerrilla warfare against the government since the 1970s and have engaged in ambushes, bombings, and assassinations of government officials and security forces;<ref name="CIAWorldFactBook-2022-2023">Template:Cite book</ref> although shrinking militarily and politically after the return of democracy in 1986,<ref name="Croissant-2017" /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> the CPP-NPA, through the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, continues to gather public support in urban areas by setting up communist fronts, infiltrating sectoral organizations, and rallying public discontent and increased militancy against the government.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The Philippines ranked 104th out of 163 countries in the 2024 Global Peace Index.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref>

Administrative divisions

Color-coded political map of the Philippines

The Philippines' regions and provinces

The Philippines is divided into 18 regions, 82 provinces, 149 cities, 1,493 municipalities, and 42,011 barangays.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Provincial Summary: Number of Provinces, Cities, Municipalities and Barangays, by Region as of September 30, 2016 |url=http://nap.psa.gov.ph/activestats/psgc/SUMWEBPROV-SEPT2016-CODED-HUC-FINAL.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170110151057/http://nap.psa.gov.ph/activestats/psgc/SUMWEBPROV-SEPT2016-CODED-HUC-FINAL.pdf |archive-date=January 10, 2017 |access-date=January 5, 2017 |publisher=Philippine Statistics Authority}}</ref> Regions other than Bangsamoro are divided for administrative convenience.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Calabarzon was the region with the greatest population Template:As of, and the National Capital Region (NCR) was the most densely populated.<ref name="PSA-2020-Census-Highlights">Template:Cite report</ref>

The Philippines is a unitary state, with the exception of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM),<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> although there have been steps towards decentralization;<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> a 1991 law devolved some powers to local governments.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref>

Economy

The Philippine economy is the world's 34th largest, with an estimated Template:As of nominal gross domestic product of Template:Currency.<ref name="IMFWEO.PH">Template:Cite web</ref> As a newly industrialized country,<ref name="FederalRegister-Vol78" /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> the Philippine economy has been transitioning from an agricultural base to one with more emphasis on services and manufacturing.<ref name="FederalRegister-Vol78">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> The country's labor force was around 50 million Template:As of, and its unemployment rate was 3.1 percent.<ref name="PSAGovPH-UnemploymentDec2023">Template:Cite press release</ref> Gross international reserves totaled Template:Currency Template:As of.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Gross International Reserves |url=https://www.bsp.gov.ph/Statistics/sdds/table12_data.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240215120950/https://www.bsp.gov.ph/Statistics/sdds/table12_data.aspx |archive-date=February 15, 2024 |publisher=Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas |url-status=live}}</ref> Debt-to-GDP ratio decreased to 60.2 percent at the end of 2023 from a 17-year high 63.7 percent at the end of the third quarter of that year, and indicated resiliency during the COVID-19 pandemic.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Gonzalez |first=Anna Leah |title=PH debt-to-GDP improves in 2023 |work=Philippine News Agency |url=https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1217973 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240131074513/https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1217973 |archive-date=January 31, 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref> The country's unit of currency is the Philippine peso (₱<ref>{{#invoke:cite|book|section=Executive Order No. 66 |title=Executive Orders and Proclamations Issued by the Governor-General [1903] |date=August 3, 1903 |url=https://quod.lib.umich.edu/p/philamer/ACD6603.1903.001/91 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200817095343/https://quod.lib.umich.edu/p/philamer/ACD6603.1903.001/91 |archive-date=August 17, 2020 |access-date=August 17, 2020 |page=89 |publisher=Bureau of Public Prints}}</ref> or PHP<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|date=August 29, 2018 |title=List one: Currency, fund and precious metal codes |url=https://www.currency-iso.org/dam/downloads/lists/list_one.xls |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200511031332/https://www.currency-iso.org/dam/downloads/lists/list_one.xls |archive-date=May 11, 2020 |access-date=August 17, 2020 |publisher=ISO 4217 Maintenance Agency |format=XLS}}</ref>).<ref>Template:Cite report</ref>

The Philippines is a net importer,<ref name="ILOOrg-2019" />Template:Rp<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Gadon |first1=Bernadette Therese M. |title=2021 trade deficit widest in 3 years |url=https://www.bworldonline.com/top-stories/2022/04/22/443881/2021-trade-deficit-widest-in-3-years/ |access-date=April 22, 2023 |work=BusinessWorld |date=April 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220421200131/https://www.bworldonline.com/top-stories/2022/04/22/443881/2021-trade-deficit-widest-in-3-years/ |archive-date=April 21, 2022}}</ref> and a debtor nation.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|year=2022|title=Philippines Net International Investment Position |publisher=CEIC |url=https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/philippines/net-international-investment-position |access-date=May 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230311060132/https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/philippines/net-international-investment-position |archive-date=March 11, 2023}}</ref> Template:As of, the country's main export markets were China, the United States, Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore;<ref name="OECWorld-PH">{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Philippines (PHL) Exports, Imports, and Trade Partners |url=https://oec.world/en/profile/country/phl |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205044653/https://oec.world/en/profile/country/phl |archive-date=December 5, 2022 |access-date=February 26, 2023 |publisher=Observatory of Economic Complexity |language=en}}</ref> primary exports included integrated circuits, office machinery and parts, electrical transformers, insulated wiring, and semiconductors.<ref name="OECWorld-PH" /> Its primary import markets that year were China, Japan, South Korea, the United States, and Indonesia.<ref name="OECWorld-PH" /> Major export crops include coconuts, bananas, and pineapples; it is the world's largest producer of abaca,<ref name="Boquet-2017" />Template:Rp and was the world's second biggest exporter of nickel ore in 2022,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-01-30/philippines-may-tax-nickel-exports-to-follow-indonesia-s-success#xj4y7vzkg |url-access=subscription |title=Nickel Gets Fresh Supply Risk as Philippines Mulls Export Tax

|last1=Serapio |first1=Manolo Jr. |last2=Calonzo |first2=Andreo |date=January 30, 2023 |work=Bloomberg |language=en |access-date=May 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230131145135/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-01-30/philippines-may-tax-nickel-exports-to-follow-indonesia-s-success |archive-date=January 31, 2023}}</ref> as well as the biggest exporter of gold-clad metals and the biggest importer of copra in 2020.<ref name="OECWorld-PH" />

Two people planting rice plants in water

Filipinos planting rice. Agriculture employed 24 percent of the Filipino workforce Template:As of.<ref name="PSAGovPH-UnemploymentDec2022">Template:Cite press release</ref>

With an average annual growth rate of six to seven percent since around 2010, the Philippines has emerged as one of the world's fastest-growing economies,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Biswas |first1=Rajiv |title=Philippines amongst world's fastest growing emerging markets |url=https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/mi/research-analysis/philippines-amongst-worlds-fastest-growing-emerging-markets-Mar23.html |access-date=April 2, 2023 |work=IHS Markit |date=March 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230311221015/https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/mi/research-analysis/philippines-amongst-worlds-fastest-growing-emerging-markets-Mar23.html |archive-date=March 11, 2023}}</ref> driven primarily by its increasing reliance on the service sector.<ref name=OECD-SMEPolicyIndex2018>Template:Cite book</ref> Regional development is uneven, however, with Manila (in particular) gaining most of the new economic growth.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Fajardo |first=Fernando |date=March 5, 2014 |title=Poverty and regional development imbalance |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=http://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/22630/poverty-and-regional-development-imbalance |access-date=July 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150222102526/http://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/22630/poverty-and-regional-development-imbalance |archive-date=February 22, 2015}}</ref> Remittances from overseas Filipinos contribute significantly to the country's economy;<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=OECD-SMEPolicyIndex2018 /> they reached a record Template:Currency in 2023, accounting for 8.5 percent of GDP.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Gonzalez |first=Anna Leah |title=OFW remittances hit all-time high in 2023 |work=Philippine News Agency |url=https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1218913 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240215073743/https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1218913 |archive-date=February 15, 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref> The Philippines is the world's primary business process outsourcing (BPO) center.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=December 2, 2010 |title=Phl overtakes India as world's BPO leader |work=The Philippine Star |url=https://www.philstar.com/business/2010/12/02/634901/phl-overtakes-india-worlds-bpo-leader |access-date=September 1, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200901193030/https://www.philstar.com/business/2010/12/02/634901/phl-overtakes-india-worlds-bpo-leader |archive-date=September 1, 2020}}</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> About 1.3 million Filipinos work in the BPO sector, primarily in customer service.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Science and technology

Modern, landscaped office building

Headquarters of the International Rice Research Institute in Los Baños, Laguna

The Philippines has one of the largest agricultural-research systems in Asia, despite relatively low spending on agricultural research and development.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite report</ref> The country has developed new varieties of crops, including rice,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> coconuts,<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> and bananas.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Research organizations include the Philippine Rice Research Institute<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=June 1, 2022 |title=Philippine Rice Research and Technological Advancements |work=BusinessMirror |url=https://businessmirror.com.ph/2022/06/01/nsic-okays-14-rice-varieties-developed-by-irri-philrice/ |access-date=February 19, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220601083727/https://businessmirror.com.ph/2022/06/01/nsic-okays-14-rice-varieties-developed-by-irri-philrice/ |archive-date=June 1, 2022}}</ref> and the International Rice Research Institute.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Philippines |url=https://www.irri.org/where-we-work/countries/philippines |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190714103217/https://www.irri.org/where-we-work/countries/philippines |archive-date=July 14, 2019 |access-date=February 9, 2023 |publisher=International Rice Research Institute |language=en}}</ref>

The Philippine Space Agency maintains the country's space program,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and the country bought its first satellite in 1996.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=July 25, 1996 |title=Mabuhay acquires Indon satellite; sets new orbit |page=9 |work=Manila Standard |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1370&dat=19960725&id=9mUVAAAAIBAJ&pg=6158,3894648 |access-date=July 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200728061150/https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1370&dat=19960725&id=9mUVAAAAIBAJ&pg=6158,3894648 |archive-date=July 28, 2020 |via=Google News}}</ref> Diwata-1, its first micro-satellite, was launched on the United States' Cygnus spacecraft in 2016.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Ronda |first=Rainier Allan |date=March 24, 2016 |title=US aircraft with Philippines's first microsatellite launched into space |work=The Philippine Star |url=http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2016/03/24/1566175/us-aircraft-philippiness-first-microsatellite-launched-space |access-date=March 24, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160327120259/http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2016/03/24/1566175/us-aircraft-philippiness-first-microsatellite-launched-space |archive-date=March 27, 2016}}</ref>

The Philippines has a high concentration of cellular-phone users,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> and a high level of mobile commerce.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Teves |first=Oliver |date=September 29, 2007 |title=Cell phones double as electronic wallets in Philippines |work=USA Today |agency=Associated Press |url=https://www.usatoday.com/tech/wireless/phones/2007-09-29-philippines-cell-phones_N.htm |access-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071025035722/https://www.usatoday.com/tech/wireless/phones/2007-09-29-philippines-cell-phones_N.htm |archive-date=October 25, 2007}}</ref> Text messaging is a popular form of communication, and the nation sent an average of one billion SMS messages per day in 2007.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Francisco |first=Rosemarie |date=March 4, 2008 |title=Filipinos sent 1 billion text messages daily in 2007 |language=en |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |agency=Reuters |url=http://technology.inquirer.net/infotech/infotech/view/20080304-122775/Filipinos-sent-1-billion-text-messages-daily-in-2007 |access-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080308115828/http://technology.inquirer.net/infotech/infotech/view/20080304-122775/Filipinos-sent-1-billion-text-messages-daily-in-2007 |archive-date=March 8, 2008}}</ref> The Philippine telecommunications industry had been dominated by the PLDT-Globe Telecom duopoly for more than two decades,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Elliott |first1=Vittoria |last2=Deck |first2=Andrew |date=November 2, 2020 |title=Duterte, Dito, and the Duopoly |work=Rest of World |url=https://restofworld.org/2020/duterte-dito-and-the-duopoly/ |access-date=February 23, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201102142904/https://restofworld.org/2020/duterte-dito-and-the-duopoly/ |archive-date=November 2, 2020}}</ref> and the 2021 entry of Dito Telecommunity improved the country's telecommunications service.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Cuyco |first=Jan |date=July 1, 2022 |title=No longer a duopoly, Philippines' mobile market sees improved 4G, 5G availability – Ookla |work=The Philippine Star |url=https://www.philstar.com/business/2022/07/01/2192313/no-longer-duopoly-philippines-mobile-market-sees-improved-4g-5g-availability-ookla |access-date=February 23, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220701073711/https://www.philstar.com/business/2022/07/01/2192313/no-longer-duopoly-philippines-mobile-market-sees-improved-4g-5g-availability-ookla |archive-date=July 1, 2022}}</ref>

Tourism

People on an observation deck overlooking hills

Tourists at Chocolate Hills, conical karst hills in Bohol

The Philippines is a popular retirement destination for foreigners because of its climate and low cost of living.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Frost |first=Charles |date=May 31, 2015 |title=Best Place to Retire |work=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/best-places-to-retire-abroad-the-philippines-1432827258 |access-date=July 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150601033128/https://www.wsj.com/articles/best-places-to-retire-abroad-the-philippines-1432827258 |archive-date=June 1, 2015}}</ref> The country's main tourist attractions are its numerous beaches;<ref name="Woods-2006" />Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> the Philippines is also a top destination for diving enthusiasts.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Rocamora |first=Joyce Ann L. |date=December 16, 2021 |title=PH still world's leading dive destination in 2021: WTA |language=en |work=Philippine News Agency |url=https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1162963 |access-date=February 19, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211216093702/https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1162963 |archive-date=December 16, 2021}}</ref> Tourist spots include Boracay, called the best island in the world by Travel + Leisure in 2012;<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Malig |first=Jojo |date=July 9, 2012 |title=Boracay named 2012 world's best island |work=ABS-CBN News |url=https://news.abs-cbn.com/lifestyle/07/06/12/boracay-named-2012-worlds-best-island |access-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160218054435/https://news.abs-cbn.com/lifestyle/07/06/12/boracay-named-2012-worlds-best-island |archive-date=February 18, 2016}}</ref> Coron and El Nido in Palawan; Cebu; Siargao, and Bohol.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Zubiri |first=Stephanie |date=November 18, 2022 |title=Beyond the beaches: five adventure experiences in the Philippines |language=en-gb |work=National Geographic |url=https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/travel/bc/2022/11/beyond-the-beaches-five-unusual-experiences-in-the-philippines |access-date=February 20, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221128091050/https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/travel/bc/2022/11/beyond-the-beaches-five-unusual-experiences-in-the-philippines |archive-date=November 28, 2022}}</ref>

Tourism contributed 5.2 percent to the Philippine GDP in 2021 (lower than 12.7 percent in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic),<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Ochave |first=Revin Mikhael D. |date=June 21, 2022 |title=Philippine tourism industry seen to reach pre-pandemic levels by 2024 |work=BusinessWorld |url=https://www.bworldonline.com/top-stories/2022/06/22/456578/philippine-tourism-industry-seen-to-reach-pre-pandemic-levels-by-2024/ |access-date=November 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220621174641/https://www.bworldonline.com/top-stories/2022/06/22/456578/philippine-tourism-industry-seen-to-reach-pre-pandemic-levels-by-2024/ |archive-date=June 21, 2022}}</ref> and provided 5.7 million jobs in 2019.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=October 21, 2020 |title=Inbound int'l tourism may pick up starting late 2021 |work=BusinessWorld |url=https://www.bworldonline.com/editors-picks/2020/10/22/324125/inbound-intl-tourism-may-pick-up-starting-late-2021/ |access-date=November 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221111072858/https://www.bworldonline.com/editors-picks/2020/10/22/324125/inbound-intl-tourism-may-pick-up-starting-late-2021/ |archive-date=November 11, 2022}}</ref> The Philippines attracted 5.45 million international visitors in 2023, 30 percent lower than the 8.26 million record in pre-pandemic 2019; most tourists came from South Korea (26.4 percent), United States (16.5 percent), Japan (5.6 percent), Australia (4.89 percent), and China (4.84 percent).<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Arnaldo |first1=Ma. Stella F. |title=International tourists spent $8.69 billion in PHL in 2023–DOT |url=https://businessmirror.com.ph/2024/01/03/international-tourists-spent-8-69-billion-in-phl-in-2023-dot/ |access-date=January 3, 2024 |work=BusinessMirror |date=January 3, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240102185145/https://businessmirror.com.ph/2024/01/03/international-tourists-spent-8-69-billion-in-phl-in-2023-dot/ |archive-date=January 2, 2024}}</ref>

Infrastructure

Transportation

Two white buses side by side, one larger than the other

Traditional (left) and modern jeepneys in Quezon City. Public utility vehicles older than 15 years are gradually being phased out in favor of eco-friendly Euro 4-compliant vehicles.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Transportation in the Philippines is by road, air, rail and water. Roads are the dominant form of transport, carrying 98 percent of people and 58 percent of cargo.<ref name="ADBOrg-PH-Transport">Template:Cite report</ref> In December 2018, there were Template:Convert of roads in the country.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> The backbone of land-based transportation in the country is the Pan-Philippine Highway, which connects the islands of Luzon, Samar, Leyte, and Mindanao.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> Inter-island transport is by the Template:Convert Strong Republic Nautical Highway, an integrated set of highways and ferry routes linking 17 cities.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite report</ref> Jeepneys are a popular, iconic public utility vehicle;<ref name="Boquet-2017" />Template:Rp other public land transport includes buses, UV Express, Template:Abbr, Filcab, taxis, and tricycles.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Traffic is a significant issue in Manila and on arterial roads to the capital.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Despite wider historical use,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> rail transportation in the Philippines is limited<ref name="Boquet-2017" />Template:Rp to transporting passengers within Metro Manila and the provinces of Laguna<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Cinco |first=Maricar |date=September 20, 2019 |title=PNR extends train trips to Los Baños |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1166894/pnr-extends-train-trips-to-los-banos |access-date=August 1, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190920094211/https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1166894/pnr-extends-train-trips-to-los-banos |archive-date=September 20, 2019}}</ref> and Quezon,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Barroga |first=Gienel |date=June 26, 2022 |title=PNR San Pablo-Lucena line reopens |work=CNN Philippines |url=https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2022/6/26/PNR-San-Pablo-Lucena-line-reopens.html |access-date=August 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220626062944/https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2022/6/26/PNR-San-Pablo-Lucena-line-reopens.html |archive-date=June 26, 2022}}</ref> with a short track in the Bicol Region.<ref name="Boquet-2017" />Template:Rp The country had a railway footprint of only Template:Convert Template:As of, which it planned to expand to Template:Convert.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Galang |first1=Vincent Mariel P. |date=June 20, 2019 |title=JICA still has 900B yen to fund rail expansion in Philippines |work=BusinessWorld |url=https://www.bworldonline.com/jica-still-has-900b-yen-to-fund-rail-expansion-in-philippines/ |access-date=June 21, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190621011358/https://www.bworldonline.com/jica-still-has-900b-yen-to-fund-rail-expansion-in-philippines/ |archive-date=June 21, 2019}}</ref> A revival of freight rail is planned to reduce road congestion.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Yee |first=Jovic |date=March 12, 2018 |title=PNR to offer freight service soon |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/974414/pnr-to-offer-freight-service-soon |access-date=August 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180312023448/https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/974414/pnr-to-offer-freight-service-soon |archive-date=March 12, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Amojelar |first=Darwin G. |date=October 4, 2018 |title=DOTr to revive Manila-Laguna cargo rail project |work=Manila Standard |url=https://manilastandard.net/business/transport-tourism/277153/dotr-to-revive-manila-laguna-cargo-rail-project.html |access-date=August 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109033602/https://manilastandard.net/business/transport-tourism/277153/dotr-to-revive-manila-laguna-cargo-rail-project.html |archive-date=November 9, 2020}}</ref>

The Philippines had 90 national government-owned airports Template:As of, of which eight are international.<ref name="PIDSGovPH-Francisco-Lim">Template:Cite journal</ref> Ninoy Aquino International Airport, formerly known as Manila International Airport, has the greatest number of passengers.<ref name="PIDSGovPH-Francisco-Lim" /> The 2017 air domestic market was dominated by Philippine Airlines, the country's flag carrier and Asia's oldest commercial airline,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=About PAL |url=http://www.philippineairlines.com/about_pal/about_pal.jsp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207160631/http://philippineairlines.com/about_pal/about_pal.jsp |archive-date=February 7, 2009 |access-date=May 4, 2013 |publisher=Philippine Airlines}}.</ref> and Cebu Pacific (the country's leading low-cost carrier).<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

A variety of boats are used throughout the Philippines;<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|last=Roxas-Lim |first=Aurora |url=http://www.ichcap.org/eng/ek/sub3/pdf_file/domain5/091_Traditional_Boatbuilding_and_Philippine_Maritime_Culture.pdf |title=Traditional Boatbuilding and Philippine Maritime Culture |publisher=Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region, United Nations |access-date=August 27, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191212173603/http://www.ichcap.org/eng/ek/sub3/pdf_file/domain5/091_Traditional_Boatbuilding_and_Philippine_Maritime_Culture.pdf |archive-date=December 12, 2019 |pages=219–222 }}</ref> most are double-outrigger vessels known as banca<ref name="Aguilar-2004">Template:Cite book</ref> or Template:Lang.<ref name="Funtecha-2000">Template:Cite journal</ref> Modern ships use plywood instead of logs, and motor engines instead of sails;<ref name="Aguilar-2004" /> they are used for fishing and inter-island travel.<ref name="Funtecha-2000" /> The Philippines has over 1,800 seaports;<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=San Juan |first=Andrea E. |date=November 3, 2022 |title=Expert presents options to resolve Philippine seaports' 'inadequacy' |work=BusinessMirror |url=https://businessmirror.com.ph/2022/11/03/expert-presents-options-to-resolve-philippine-seaports-inadequacy/ |access-date=February 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221102195328/https://businessmirror.com.ph/2022/11/03/expert-presents-options-to-resolve-philippine-seaports-inadequacy/ |archive-date=November 2, 2022}}</ref> of these, the principal seaports of Manila (the country's chief, and busiest, port),<ref>Template:Cite tech report</ref> Batangas, Subic Bay, Cebu, Iloilo, Davao, Cagayan de Oro, General Santos, and Zamboanga are part of the ASEAN Transport Network.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>Template:Cite report</ref>

Energy

A large dam, seen from above

The Ambuklao Dam on the Agno River in Bokod, Benguet

The Philippines had a total installed power capacity of 26,882 MW in 2021; 43 percent was generated from coal, 14 percent from oil, 14 percent hydropower, 12 percent from natural gas, and seven percent from geothermal sources.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> It is the world's third-biggest geothermal-energy producer, behind the United States and Indonesia.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> The country's largest dam is the Template:Convert San Roque Dam on the Agno River in Pangasinan.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> The Malampaya gas field, discovered in the early 1990s off the coast of Palawan, reduced the Philippines' reliance on imported oil; it provides about 40 percent of Luzon's energy requirements, and 30 percent of the country's energy needs.<ref name="Boquet-2017" />Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite report</ref>

The Philippines has three electrical grids, one each for Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.<ref name="Ma-2016">{{#invoke:cite|web|last1=Ma |first1=Zheng |last2=Jørgensen |first2=Bo Nørregaard |last3=Billanes |first3=Joy Dalmacio |title=Smart Energy in the Philippines |url=https://findresearcher.sdu.dk/ws/files/141095725/CFEI_Report_Smart_Energy_in_Philippines.pdf |website=SDU's Research Portal |publisher=University of Southern Denmark |access-date=August 31, 2023 |pages=14, 24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230831194551/https://findresearcher.sdu.dk/ws/files/141095725/CFEI_Report_Smart_Energy_in_Philippines.pdf |archive-date=August 31, 2023 |date=September 2016}}</ref> The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines manages the country's power grid since 2009<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Gatdula |first1=Donnabelle L. |title=National Grid takes over TransCo |url=https://www.philstar.com/business/2009/01/15/431441/national-grid-takes-over-transco |access-date=August 31, 2023 |work=The Philippine Star |date=January 15, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230531011538/https://www.philstar.com/business/2009/01/15/431441/national-grid-takes-over-transco |archive-date=May 31, 2023}}</ref> and provides overhead transmission lines across the country's islands. Electric distribution to consumers is provided by privately owned distribution utilities and government-owned electric cooperatives.<ref name="Ma-2016" /> As of end-2021, the Philippines' household electrification level was about 95.41%.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref>

Plans to harness nuclear energy began during the early 1970s during the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos in response to the 1973 oil crisis.<ref name="WorldNuclearOrg-Philippines">{{#invoke:cite|web|date=February 2023 |title=Nuclear Power in the Philippines |url=https://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profiles/countries-o-s/philippines.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230219230358/https://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profiles/countries-o-s/philippines.aspx |archive-date=February 19, 2023 |access-date=February 19, 2023 |publisher=World Nuclear Association}}</ref> The Philippines completed Southeast Asia's first nuclear power plant in Bataan in 1984.<ref name="Pekkanen-2021">Template:Cite book</ref> Political issues following Marcos' ouster and safety concerns after the 1986 Chernobyl disaster prevented the plant from being commissioned,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="WorldNuclearOrg-Philippines" /> and plans to operate it remain controversial.<ref name="Pekkanen-2021" /><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Tan |first1=Rebecca |last2=Enano |first2=Jhesset O. |date=January 25, 2023 |title=Clean-energy push puts abandoned Philippine nuclear plant back in spotlight |language=en |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/01/25/philippines-nuclear-marcos-climate-change/ |access-date=February 19, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230126032945/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/01/25/philippines-nuclear-marcos-climate-change/ |archive-date=January 26, 2023}}</ref>

Water supply and sanitation

A low, blue building

A water-district office in Banate, Iloilo

Water supply and sanitation outside Metro Manila is provided by the government through local water districts in cities or towns.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Kohsaka-2007">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Metro Manila is served by Manila Water and Maynilad Water Services. Except for shallow wells for domestic use, groundwater users are required to obtain a permit from the National Water Resources Board.<ref name="Kohsaka-2007" /> In 2022, the total water withdrawals increased to Template:Convert from Template:Convert in 2021 and the total expenditures on water were amounted to ₱{{#expr:59.37+47.12+38.32}} billion.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref>

Most sewage in the Philippines flows into septic tanks.<ref name="Kohsaka-2007" /> In 2015, the Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation noted that 74 percent of the Philippine population had access to improved sanitation and "good progress" had been made between 1990 and 2015.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> Ninety-six percent of Filipino households had an improved source of drinking water and 92 percent of households had sanitary toilet facilities Template:As of; connections of toilet facilities to appropriate sewerage systems remain largely insufficient, however, especially in rural and urban poor communities.<ref name="DOH-2018" />Template:Rp

Demographics

As of May 1, 2020, the Philippines had a population of 109,035,343.<ref name="PSAGovPH-2020Census"/> More than 60 percent of the country's population live in the coastal zone<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and in 2020, 54 percent lived in urban areas.<ref name="PSAGovPH-2020-Urban">Template:Cite press release</ref> Manila, its capital, and Quezon City (the country's most populous city) are in Metro Manila. About 13.48 million people ({{#expr: (13484462/109033245)*100 round 0}} percent of the Philippines' population) live in Metro Manila,<ref name="PSAGovPH-2020-Urban" /> the country's most populous metropolitan area<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> and the world's fifth most populous.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> Between 1948 and 2010, the population of the Philippines increased almost fivefold from 19 million to 92 million.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Population of the Philippines: Census Years 1799 to 2010 |url=http://www.nscb.gov.ph/secstat/d_popn.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120704171010/http://www.nscb.gov.ph/secstat/d_popn.asp |archive-date=July 4, 2012 |website=National Statistical Coordination Board |access-date=July 24, 2023}}</ref>

The country's median age is 25.3, and 63.9 percent of its population is between 15 and 64 years old.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> The Philippines' average annual population growth rate is decreasing,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> although government attempts to further reduce population growth have been contentious.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=September 29, 2010 |title=Bishops threaten civil disobedience over RH bill |work=GMANews.TV |url=http://www.gmanews.tv/100days/story/202186/bishops-threaten-civil-disobedience-over-rh-bill |access-date=October 16, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110221140718/http://www.gmanews.tv/100days/story/202186/bishops-threaten-civil-disobedience-over-rh-bill |archive-date=February 21, 2011}}</ref> The country reduced its poverty rate from 49.2 percent in 1985<ref name="WorldBank-Poverty-2023">Template:Cite report</ref> to 18.1 percent in 2021,<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> and its income inequality began to decline in 2012.<ref name="WorldBank-Poverty-2023" />

Ethnicity

Another color-coded map

Dominant ethnic groups by province

The country has substantial ethnic diversity, due to foreign influence and the archipelago's division by water and topography.<ref name="Banlaoi-2009">Template:Cite book</ref> According to the 2020 census, the Philippines' largest ethnic groups were Tagalog (26.0 percent), Visayans [excluding the Cebuano, Hiligaynon, and Waray] (14.3 percent), Ilocano and Cebuano (both eight percent), Hiligaynon (7.9 percent), Bikol (6.5 percent), and Waray (3.8 percent).<ref name="PSAGovPH-Ethnicity-2020Census" /> The country's indigenous peoples consisted of 110 enthnolinguistic groups,<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> with a combined population of 15.56 million, in 2020;<ref name="PSAGovPH-Ethnicity-2020Census" /> they include the Igorot, Lumad, Mangyan, and the indigenous peoples of Palawan.<ref>Template:Cite tech report</ref>

Negritos are thought to be among the islands' earliest inhabitants.<ref name="Dolan-1991" />Template:Rp These minority aboriginal settlers are an Australoid group, a remnant of the first human migration from Africa to Australia who were probably displaced by later waves of migration.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Some Philippine Negritos have a Denisovan admixture in their genome.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=August 31, 2012 |title=Extinct humanoid species may have lived in PHL |language=en |work=GMA News Online |url=https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/scitech/science/272046/extinct-humanoid-species-may-have-lived-in-phl/story/ |access-date=February 8, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181227040611/https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/scitech/science/272046/extinct-humanoid-species-may-have-lived-in-phl/story/ |archive-date=December 27, 2018}}</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Ethnic Filipinos generally belong to several Southeast Asian ethnic groups, classified linguistically as Austronesians speaking Malayo-Polynesian languages.<ref name="Ethnologue-PH" /> The Austronesian population's origin is uncertain, but relatives of Taiwanese aborigines probably brought their language and mixed with the region's existing population.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The Lumad and Sama-Bajau ethnic groups have an ancestral affinity with the Austroasiatic- and Mlabri-speaking Htin peoples of mainland Southeast Asia. Westward expansion from Papua New Guinea to eastern Indonesia and Mindanao has been detected in the Blaan people and the Sangir language.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Immigrants arrived in the Philippines from elsewhere in the Spanish Empire, especially from the Spanish Americas.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Mehl-2016">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp<ref name= "Intercolonial">Template:Cite book</ref> A 2016 National Geographic project concluded that people living in the Philippine archipelago carried genetic markers in the following percentages: 53 percent Southeast Asia and Oceania, 36 percent Eastern Asia, 5 percent Southern Europe, 3 percent Southern Asia, and 2 percent Native American (from Latin America).<ref name="Mehl-2016" />Template:Rp<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Reference Populations – Geno 2.0 Next Generation |url=https://genographic.nationalgeographic.com/reference-populations-next-gen/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160704204736/https://genographic.nationalgeographic.com/reference-populations-next-gen/ |archive-date=July 4, 2016 |website=National Geographic}}</ref>

Descendants of mixed-race couples are known as Mestizos or Template:Lang,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> which during the Spanish colonial times, were mostly composed of Chinese mestizos (Template:Lang), Spanish mestizos (Template:Lang) and the mix thereof (Template:Lang).<ref>Template:Cite thesis</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|date=December 8, 2015 |title=Sheer Realities: A Celebration of Philippine Culture |url=https://greyartgallery.nyu.edu/exhibition/sheer-realities-022300-042200/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170117194046/https://greyartgallery.nyu.edu/exhibition/sheer-realities-022300-042200/ |archive-date=January 17, 2017 |access-date=March 4, 2023 |website=Grey Art Gallery |publisher=New York University}}</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The modern Chinese Filipinos are well-integrated into Filipino society.<ref name="Banlaoi-2009" /><ref>Template:Cite thesis</ref> Primarily the descendants of immigrants from Fujian,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> the pure ethnic Chinese Filipinos during the American colonial era (early 1900s) purportedly numbered about 1.35 million; while an estimated 22.8 million (around 20 percent) of Filipinos have half or partial Chinese ancestry from precolonial, colonial, and 20th century Chinese migrants.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Guanqun |first=Wang |date=August 23, 2009 |title=Chinese lunar new year might become national holiday in Philippines too |work=Xinhua |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-08/23/content_11930729.htm |access-date=February 8, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090826194926/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-08/23/content_11930729.htm |archive-date=August 26, 2009}}</ref><ref name="senate.gov.ph">Template:Cite press release</ref> During the Hispanic era (late 1700s), the tribute-census showed mixed Spanish Filipinos made up a moderate ratio (around 5 percent) of all citizens.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp Meanwhile, a smaller proportion (2.33 percent) of the population were Mexican Filipinos.<ref name= "Intercolonial" />Template:Rp Almost 300,000 American citizens live in the country Template:As of,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|date=March 3, 2022 |title=U.S. Relations With the Philippines |url=https://www.state.gov/u-s-relations-with-the-philippines/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207062435/https://www.state.gov/u-s-relations-with-the-philippines/ |archive-date=February 7, 2023 |access-date=February 8, 2023 |publisher=United States Department of State}}</ref> and up to 250,000 Amerasians are scattered across the cities of Angeles, Manila, and Olongapo.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|type=Academic paper presented at 9th International Conference on the Philippines (ICOPHIL-9) |last1=Kutschera |first1=P. C. |last2=Caputi |first2=Marie A. |date=October 2012 |title=The Case for Categorization of Military Filipino Amerasians as Diaspora |url=http://amerasianresearch.org/pdf/ICOPHIL-9FINALFilipinoDiaspora-Kutschera-Caputi.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131101213421/http://amerasianresearch.org/pdf/ICOPHIL-9FINALFilipinoDiaspora-Kutschera-Caputi.pdf |archive-date=November 1, 2013 |access-date=July 11, 2016 |publisher=Michigan State University |location=E. Lansing, Mich. |via=AmerasianResearch.org}}</ref> Other significant non-indigenous minorities include Indians<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and Arabs.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Japanese Filipinos include escaped Christians (Kirishitan) who fled persecutions by Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Languages

Template:Main Ethnologue lists 186 languages for the Philippines, 182 of which are living languages; the other four no longer have any known speakers. Most native languages are part of the Philippine branch of the Malayo-Polynesian languages, which is a branch of the Austronesian language family.<ref name="Ethnologue-PH">{{#invoke:cite|web|date=2013 |title=Philippines |url=https://www.ethnologue.com/country/PH |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130309171641/http://www.ethnologue.com/country/PH |archive-date=March 9, 2013 |access-date=February 8, 2023 |website=Ethnologue |publisher=SIL International |language=en |location=Dallas, TX}}</ref> Spanish-based creole varieties, collectively known as Chavacano, are also spoken.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Many Philippine Negrito languages have unique vocabularies which survived Austronesian acculturation.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Filipino and English are the country's official languages.<ref name="GovPH-OfficialLanguage" /> Filipino, a standardized version of Tagalog, is spoken primarily in Metro Manila.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Filipino and English are used in government, education, print, broadcast media, and business, often with a third local language;<ref name="Brown-Ganguly-2003">Template:Cite book</ref> code-switching between English and other local languages, notably Tagalog, is common.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The Philippine constitution provides for Spanish and Arabic on a voluntary, optional basis.<ref name="GovPH-OfficialLanguage">Template:Cite constitution</ref> Spanish, a widely used lingua franca during the late nineteenth century, has declined greatly in use,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Weedon |first=Alan |date=August 10, 2019 |title=The Philippines is fronting up to its Spanish heritage, and for some it's paying off |work=ABC News |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-08-10/inside-the-push-to-bring-back-spanish-into-the-philippines/11356590 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190810044706/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-08-10/inside-the-push-to-bring-back-spanish-into-the-philippines/11356590 |archive-date=August 10, 2019 |access-date=March 31, 2023}}</ref> although Spanish loanwords are still present in Philippine languages.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Arabic is primarily taught in Mindanao Islamic schools.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

The top languages generally spoken at home Template:As of are Tagalog, Binisaya, Hiligaynon, Ilocano, Cebuano, and Bikol.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> Nineteen regional languages are auxiliary official languages as media of instruction:<ref name="GMA-DepEd-7-Languages">{{#invoke:cite|news|date=July 13, 2013 |title=DepEd adds 7 languages to mother tongue-based education for Kinder to Grade 3 |language=en |work=GMA News Online |url=http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/317280/news/nation/deped-adds-7-languages-to-mother-tongue-based-education-for-kinder-to-grade-3 |access-date=February 8, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131216045522/http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/317280/news/nation/deped-adds-7-languages-to-mother-tongue-based-education-for-kinder-to-grade-3 |archive-date=December 16, 2013}}</ref>

• Aklanon
• Bikol
• Cebuano
• Chavacano
• Hiligaynon
• Ibanag
• Ilocano
• Ivatan
• Kapampangan
• Kinaray-a
• Maguindanao
• Maranao
• Pangasinan
• Sambal
• Surigaonon
• Tagalog
• Tausug
• Waray
• Yakan

Other indigenous languages, including Cuyonon, Ifugao, Itbayat, Kalinga, Kamayo, Kankanaey, Masbateño, Romblomanon, Manobo, and several Visayan languages, are used in their respective provinces.<ref name="Ethnologue-PH" /> Filipino Sign Language is the national sign language, and the language of deaf education.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Kabiling |first=Genalyn |date=November 12, 2018 |title=Filipino Sign Language declared as nat'l sign language of Filipino deaf |work=Manila Bulletin |url=https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/11/12/filipino-sign-language-declared-as-natl-sign-language-of-filipino-deaf/ |access-date=November 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181112122321/https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/11/12/filipino-sign-language-declared-as-natl-sign-language-of-filipino-deaf/ |archive-date=November 12, 2018}}</ref>

Religion

Large crowd outside a colorfully-decorated church

Catholics attend Mass at Basilica del Santo Niño during the annual Sinulog festival in Cebu.

Although the Philippines is a secular state with freedom of religion, an overwhelming majority of Filipinos consider religion very important<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> and irreligion is very low.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="PSAGovPH-2015Census-Religion">Template:Cite report</ref> Christianity is the dominant religion<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref name="StateGov-ReligiousFreedom-2015">Template:Cite report</ref> followed by about 89 percent of the population.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> The country had the world's third-largest Roman Catholic population Template:As of, and was Asia's largest Christian nation.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> Census data from 2020 found that 78.8 percent of the population professed Roman Catholicism;Template:Efn other Christian denominations include Template:Lang, the Philippine Independent Church, and Seventh-day Adventism.<ref name="PSAGovPH-2020Census-Religion">Template:Cite press release</ref> Protestants made up about 5% to 7% of the population in 2010.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Protestant Christianity in the Philippines |url=https://rlp.hds.harvard.edu/faq/protestant-christianity-philippines |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160421202509/https://rlp.hds.harvard.edu/faq/protestant-christianity-philippines |archive-date=April 21, 2016 |access-date=February 7, 2023 |website=Religious Literacy Project |publisher=Harvard Divinity School}}</ref> The Philippines sends many Christian missionaries around the world, and is a training center for foreign priests and nuns.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=July 16, 2015 |title=Religious and lay Filipino missionaries in the world are "Christ first witnesses |language=en |work=AsiaNews |url=https://www.asianews.it/news-en/Religious-and-lay-Filipino-missionariesin-the-world-are-%E2%80%9CChrist-first-witnesses-34790.html |access-date=April 23, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220423154532/https://www.asianews.it/news-en/Religious-and-lay-Filipino-missionariesin-the-world-are-%E2%80%9CChrist-first-witnesses-34790.html |archive-date=April 23, 2022}}</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Islam is the country's second-largest religion, with 6.4 percent of the population in the 2020 census.<ref name="PSAGovPH-2020Census-Religion" /> Most Muslims live in Mindanao and nearby islands,<ref name="StateGov-ReligiousFreedom-2015" /> and most adhere to the Shafi'i school of Sunni Islam.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

About 0.2 percent of the population follow indigenous religions,<ref name="PSAGovPH-2020Census-Religion" /> whose practices and folk beliefs are often syncretized with Christianity and Islam.<ref name="Rodell-2002" />Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Buddhism is practiced by about 0.04% of the population,<ref name="PSAGovPH-2020Census-Religion" /> primarily by Filipinos of Chinese descent.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Health

A steadily-rising graph until the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020

Life expectancy in the Philippines, 1938–2021

Health care in the Philippines is provided by the national and local governments, although private payments account for most healthcare spending.<ref name="DOH-2018">Template:Cite report</ref>Template:Rp<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Ordinario |first=Cai |date=October 26, 2018 |title=Out-of-pocket health expense of Pinoys rose in 2017–PSA |work=BusinessMirror |url=https://businessmirror.com.ph/2018/10/26/out-of-pocket-health-expense-of-pinoys-rose-in-2017-psa/ |access-date=April 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200728061056/https://businessmirror.com.ph/2018/10/26/out-of-pocket-health-expense-of-pinoys-rose-in-2017-psa/ |archive-date=July 28, 2020}}</ref> Per-capita health expenditure in 2022 was Template:Philippine peso and health expenditures were 5.5 percent of the country's GDP.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> The 2023 budget allocation for healthcare was Template:Currency.<ref name="OneNews-MarcosSigns2023Budget" /> The 2019 enactment of the Universal Health Care Act by President Duterte facilitated the automatic enrollment of all Filipinos in the national health insurance program.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=de Vera |first=Ben O. |date=March 21, 2022 |title=Gov't subsidy to PhilHealth hits record-high in 2022 |language=en |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://business.inquirer.net/343893/govt-subsidy-to-philhealth-hits-record-high-in-2022 |access-date=November 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220321033643/https://business.inquirer.net/343893/govt-subsidy-to-philhealth-hits-record-high-in-2022 |archive-date=March 21, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=March 14, 2019 |title=UHC Act in the Philippines: a new dawn for health care |work=World Health Organization |url=https://www.who.int/philippines/news/feature-stories/detail/uhc-act-in-the-philippines-a-new-dawn-for-health-care |access-date=July 25, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190329031526/https://www.who.int/philippines/news/feature-stories/detail/uhc-act-in-the-philippines-a-new-dawn-for-health-care |archive-date=March 29, 2019}}</ref> Since 2018, Malasakit Centers (one-stop shops) have been set up in several government-operated hospitals to provide medical and financial assistance to indigent patients.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Ismael |first=Javier Joe |date=March 4, 2022 |title=151st Malasakit Center inaugurated in Quirino |language=en |work=The Manila Times |url=https://www.manilatimes.net/2022/03/04/news/regions/151st-malasakit-center-inaugurated-in-quirino/1834988 |access-date=May 26, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220305120759/https://www.manilatimes.net/2022/03/04/news/regions/151st-malasakit-center-inaugurated-in-quirino/1834988 |archive-date=March 5, 2022}}</ref>

Average life expectancy in the Philippines Template:As of is 70.48 years (66.97 years for males, and 74.15 years for females).<ref name="CIAWorldFactBook" /> Access to medicine has improved due to increasing Filipino acceptance of generic drugs.<ref name="DOH-2018" />Template:Rp The country's leading causes of death in 2021 were ischaemic heart diseases, cerebrovascular diseases, COVID-19, neoplasms, and diabetes.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> Communicable diseases are correlated with natural disasters, primarily floods.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> One million Filipinos have active tuberculosis, the fourth highest global prevalence rate.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

The Philippines has 1,387 hospitals, 33 percent of which are government-run; 23,281 barangay health stations, 2,592 rural health units, 2,411 birthing homes, and 659 infirmaries provide primary care throughout the country.<ref name="RVONL-HealthCare-2021">Template:Cite report</ref> Since 1967, the Philippines had become the largest global supplier of nurses;<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> seventy percent of nursing graduates go overseas to work, causing problems in retaining skilled practitioners.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Education

Front of a very old building

Founded in 1611, the University of Santo Tomas is Asia's oldest extant university.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref>

Primary and secondary schooling in the Philippines consists of six years of elementary period, four years of junior high school, and two years of senior high school.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=San Pedro |first=Dexter |date=May 15, 2013 |title=Aquino signs K–12 enhanced basic education law |work=InterAksyon |url=http://www.interaksyon.com/article/61826/aquino-signs-k-12-enhanced-basic-education-law |access-date=September 23, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614003442/http://www.interaksyon.com/article/61826/aquino-signs-k-12-enhanced-basic-education-law |archive-date=June 14, 2013}}</ref> Public education, provided by the government, is free at the elementary and secondary levels and at most public higher-education institutions.<ref name="OECD-2017May">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Corrales |first=Nestor |date=August 4, 2017 |title=Duterte signs into law bill granting free tuition in SUCs |language=en |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/920306/breaking-duterte-signs-law-granting-free-tuition-in-sucs |access-date=February 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804035732/https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/920306/breaking-duterte-signs-law-granting-free-tuition-in-sucs |archive-date=August 4, 2017}}</ref> Science high schools for talented students were established in 1963.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The government provides technical-vocational training and development through the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In 2004, the government began offering alternative education to out-of-school children, youth, and adults to improve literacy;<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> madaris were mainstreamed in 16 regions that year, primarily in Mindanao Muslim areas under the Department of Education.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Esplanada |first=Jerry E. |date=July 20, 2009 |title=Mainstreaming Madrasa |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/learning/view/20090720-216304/Mainstreaming-Madrasa |access-date=September 23, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140724102132/http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/learning/view/20090720-216304/Mainstreaming-Madrasa |archive-date=July 24, 2014}}</ref> Catholic schools, which number more than 1,500,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and higher education institutions are an integral part of the educational system.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref>

The Philippines has 1,975 higher education institutions Template:As of, of which 246 are public and 1,729 are private.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref> Public universities are non-sectarian, and are primarily classified as state-administered or local government-funded.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> The national university is the eight-school University of the Philippines (UP) system.<ref>Template:Cite PH act</ref> The country's top-ranked universities are the University of the Philippines Diliman, Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University, and University of Santo Tomas.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|date=2023 |title=QS Asia University Rankings 2023 |url=https://www.topuniversities.com/asia-university-rankings/2023 |access-date=March 25, 2024 |website=QS World University Rankings}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|date=2020 |title=World University Rankings 2020 |url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/2020/world-ranking#!/page/0/length/25/locations/PH/sort_by/rank/sort_order/asc/cols/stats |website=Times Higher Education World University Rankings}}</ref>

Template:As of, the Philippines had a basic literacy rate of 93.8 percent of those five years old or older,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Hernandez |first=Jobo E. |date=October 29, 2020 |title=Literacy rate estimated at 93.8% among 5 year olds or older — PSA |work=BusinessWorld |url=https://www.bworldonline.com/economy/2020/10/29/325932/literacy-rate-estimated-at-93-8-among-5-year-olds-or-older-psa/ |access-date=November 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221111071307/https://www.bworldonline.com/economy/2020/10/29/325932/literacy-rate-estimated-at-93-8-among-5-year-olds-or-older-psa/ |archive-date=November 11, 2022}}</ref> and a functional literacy rate of 91.6 percent of those aged 10 to 64.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Talavera |first=Catherine |date=December 14, 2020 |title=Functional literacy rate improves in 2019 – PSA |work=The Philippine Star |url=https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2020/12/14/2063627/functional-literacy-rate-improves-2019-psa |access-date=November 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201214020049/https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2020/12/14/2063627/functional-literacy-rate-improves-2019-psa |archive-date=December 14, 2020}}</ref> Education, a significant proportion of the national budget, was allocated Template:Currency from the Template:Currency 2023 budget.<ref name="OneNews-MarcosSigns2023Budget">{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Flores |first=Helen |date=December 17, 2022 |title=Marcos Signs P5.268-Trillion National Budget For 2023 |work=OneNews |url=https://www.onenews.ph/articles/marcos-signs-p5-268-trillion-national-budget-for-2023 |access-date=February 16, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221217155623/https://www.onenews.ph/articles/marcos-signs-p5-268-trillion-national-budget-for-2023 |archive-date=December 17, 2022}}</ref> Template:As of, the country has 1,640 public libraries affiliated with the National Library of the Philippines.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Statistical Number of Affiliated Public Libraries |url=http://web.nlp.gov.ph/nlp/?q=node/10266 |website=National Library of the Philippines |access-date=July 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230725004228/http://web.nlp.gov.ph/nlp/?q=node/10266 |archive-date=July 25, 2023}}</ref>

Culture

A terraced hillside, seen from above

The Banaue Rice Terraces, carved by ancestors of the Ifugao people

The Philippines has significant cultural diversity, reinforced by the country's fragmented geography.<ref name="Junker-1999" />Template:Rp<ref name="Bankoff-2017">Template:Cite book</ref> Spanish and American cultures profoundly influenced Filipino culture as a result of long colonization.<ref name="Edelstein-2011">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Banlaoi-2009"/> The cultures of Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago developed distinctly, since they had limited Spanish influence and more influence from nearby Islamic regions.<ref name="Wernstedt-1967" />Template:Rp Indigenous groups such as the Igorots have preserved their precolonial customs and traditions by resisting the Spanish.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> A national identity emerged during the 19th century, however, with shared national symbols and cultural and historical touchstones.<ref name="Bankoff-2017" />

Hispanic legacies include the dominance of Catholicism<ref name="Guillermo-2012" />Template:Rp<ref name="Edelstein-2011" /> and the prevalence of Spanish names and surnames, which resulted from an 1849 edict ordering the systematic distribution of family names and the implementation of Spanish naming customs;<ref name="Boquet-2017" />Template:Rp<ref name="Woods-2006" />Template:Rp the names of many locations also have Spanish origins.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> American influence on modern Filipino culture<ref name="Banlaoi-2009"/> is evident in the use of English<ref name="Nadal-2011">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp and Filipino consumption of fast food and American films and music.<ref name="Edelstein-2011" />

Public holidays in the Philippines are classified as regular or special.<ref>Template:Cite PH act</ref> Festivals are primarily religious, and most towns and villages have such a festival (usually to honor a patron saint).<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Wendt-1998">Template:Cite journal</ref> Better-known festivals include Ati-Atihan,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Aguirre |first=Jun |date=March 4, 2018 |title=Legend of the Ati-atihan Fest in Aklan |work=BusinessMirror |url=https://businessmirror.com.ph/2018/03/04/legend-of-the-ati-atihan-fest-in-aklan/ |access-date=September 3, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200903154448/https://businessmirror.com.ph/2018/03/04/legend-of-the-ati-atihan-fest-in-aklan/ |archive-date=September 3, 2020}}</ref> Dinagyang,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Moriones,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Cinco |first=Maricar |date=March 26, 2018 |title=Moriones: solemn tradition, not festive occasion |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/978072/moriones-festival-returns-to-religious-roots |access-date=September 3, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326035724/https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/978072/moriones-festival-returns-to-religious-roots |archive-date=March 26, 2018}}</ref> Sinulog,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=February 27, 2018 |title=Sinulog named as Asia's most popular festival |work=SunStar |url=https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/421022/Business/Sinulog-named-as-Asias-most-popular-festival |access-date=September 3, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200903161024/https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/421022/Business/Sinulog-named-as-Asias-most-popular-festival |archive-date=September 3, 2020}}</ref> and Flores de Mayo—a month-long devotion to the Virgin Mary held in May.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The country's Christmas season begins as early as September 1,<ref name="Rood-2019">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp and Holy Week is a solemn religious observance for its Christian population.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Rood-2019" />Template:Rp

Values

Colored outdoor statue of a child pressing their forehead on the hand of a seated elder

Statue in Iriga commemorating Template:Lang

Filipino values are rooted primarily in personal alliances based in kinship, obligation, friendship, religion (particularly Christianity), and commerce.<ref name="Dolan-1991" />Template:Rp They center around social harmony through Template:Lang,<ref name="Qiu-2004">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp motivated primarily by the desire for acceptance by a group.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Warner-2014" /><ref name="Nadal-2011" />Template:Rp Reciprocity through Template:Lang (a debt of gratitude) is a significant Filipino cultural trait, and an internalized debt can never be fully repaid.<ref name="Qiu-2004" />Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The main sanction for divergence from these values are the concepts of Template:Lang (shame)<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and loss of Template:Lang (self-esteem).<ref name="Warner-2014">Template:Cite book</ref>

The family is central to Philippine society; norms such as loyalty, maintaining close relationships and care for elderly parents are ingrained in Philippine society.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Respect for authority and the elderly is valued, and is shown with gestures such as Template:Lang and the honorifics Template:Lang and Template:Lang and Template:Lang (older brother) or Template:Lang (older sister).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> Other Filipino values are optimism about the future, pessimism about the present, concern about other people, friendship and friendliness, hospitality, religiosity, respect for oneself and others (particularly women), and integrity.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Art and architecture

Painting of dying gladiators

Juan Luna's Spoliarium (1884) at the National Museum of the Philippines

Philippine art combines indigenous folk art, east-Asian and Classical traditions.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="McFerson-2002">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|last1=Hernandez|first1=Eloisa May P.|title=The Spanish Colonial Tradition in Philippine Visual Arts|url=http://ncca.gov.ph/subcommissions/subcommission-on-the-arts-sca/visual-arts/the-spanish-colonial-tradition-in-philippine-visual-arts/%7Cpublisher=National Commission for Culture and the Arts|access-date=April 29, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160421082733/http://ncca.gov.ph/subcommissions/subcommission-on-the-arts-sca/visual-arts/the-spanish-colonial-tradition-in-philippine-visual-arts/%7Carchive-date=April 21, 2016|date=April 15, 2015|at=A. Painting}}</ref> During the Spanish colonial period, art was used to spread Catholicism mainly through paintings and sculptures. The first recorded sculptor in the Philippines is Juan de los Santos (1590 –1660) known for making retablos.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref> In 1821, Damian Domingo, the father of Filipino paintings, opened the Academia de Dibujo art school in Binondo.<ref name=":1" /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Other artists during Spanish colonial rule included painters such as Josef Luciano Dans, Jose Honorato Lozano, Mariano Asuncion<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and sculptors such as Isabelo Tampinco and Crispulo Hocson.<ref name=":1" /> Artist whose works drew attention to the Philippines are Juan Luna and Félix Resurrección Hidalgo.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|last1=Ocampo |first1=Ambeth |author1-link=Ambeth Ocampo |title=Jose Rizal in Filipino Literature and History |url=https://archium.ateneo.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1042&context=history-faculty-pubs |publisher=Ateneo de Manila University |access-date=May 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414005130/https://archium.ateneo.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1042&context=history-faculty-pubs |archive-date=April 14, 2021 |pages=77–78}}</ref> Fernando Amorsolo dominated Philippine paintings during the American colonial period, popular for his pastoral scenes of Philippine countryside.<ref name="NCCA">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Victorio Edades known as the father of Modern Philippine Art, popularized Modernism in the Philippines in 1920s and 1930s.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Old, mossy church with a lawn in front

The early-18th-century Earthquake Baroque Paoay Church in Ilocos Norte, a National Cultural Treasure and a UNESCO World Heritage Site as one of four Baroque Churches of the Philippines<ref name="UNESCO-BaroqueChurches" />

Traditional Philippine architecture has two main models: the indigenous Template:Lang and the Template:Lang, which developed under Spanish rule.<ref name="Boquet-2017" />Template:Rp Some regions, such as Batanes, differ slightly due to climate; limestone was used as a building material, and houses were built to withstand typhoons.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Spanish architecture left an imprint in town designs around a central square or Template:Lang, but many of its buildings were damaged or destroyed during World War II.<ref>Template:Cite conference</ref><ref name="Ring-1996" /> Several Philippine churches adapted baroque architecture to withstand earthquakes, leading to the development of Earthquake Baroque;<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Girard-2021">Template:Cite book</ref> four baroque churches have been listed as a collective UNESCO World Heritage Site.<ref name="UNESCO-BaroqueChurches">{{#invoke:cite|web|year=2010 |title=Baroque Churches of the Philippines |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/677/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060210154046/https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/677/ |archive-date=February 10, 2006 |access-date=July 22, 2020 |website=UNESCO World Heritage Centre |publisher=UNESCO}}</ref> Spanish colonial fortifications (Template:Lang) in several parts of the Philippines were primarily designed by missionary architects and built by Filipino stonemasons.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Vigan, in Ilocos Sur, is known for its Hispanic-style houses and buildings.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

American rule introduced new architectural styles in the construction of government buildings and Art Deco theaters.<ref name="NCCAGovPH-Architecture">{{#invoke:cite|web|last1=Noche |first1=Manuel D. C. |title=History of Philippine Architecture |date=April 14, 2015 |url=http://ncca.gov.ph/subcommissions/subcommission-on-the-arts-sca/architecture-and-allied-arts-2/history-of-philippine-architecture/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170421020700/http://ncca.gov.ph/subcommissions/subcommission-on-the-arts-sca/architecture-and-allied-arts-2/history-of-philippine-architecture/ |archive-date=April 21, 2017 |access-date=September 8, 2016 |publisher=National Commission for Culture and the Arts}}</ref> During the American period, construction of Gabaldon school buildings began,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> and some city planning using architectural designs and master plans by Daniel Burnham was done in portions of Manila and Baguio.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Part of the Burnham plan was the construction of government buildings reminiscent of Greek or Neoclassical architecture.<ref name="NCCAGovPH-Architecture" /><ref name="Girard-2021" /> Buildings from the Spanish and American periods can be seen in Iloilo, especially in Calle Real.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Salas |first=Vic |date=August 9, 2022 |title=[Ilonggo Notes] A city of cultural heritage tourism zones |work=Rappler |url=https://www.rappler.com/life-and-style/travel/ilonggo-notes-city-cultural-heritage-tourism-zones-iloilo/ |access-date=November 8, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220809115745/https://www.rappler.com/life-and-style/travel/ilonggo-notes-city-cultural-heritage-tourism-zones-iloilo/ |archive-date=August 9, 2022}}</ref>

Music and dance

Female dancers in colorful dresses

Tinikling, a dance depicting the swift leg movements of a tikling bird eluding a farmer's traps<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

There are two types of Philippine folk dance, stemming from traditional indigenous influences and Spanish influence.<ref name="Rodell-2002" />Template:Rp Although native dances had become less popular,<ref name="Villaruz-2006">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp folk dancing began to revive during the 1920s.<ref name="Villaruz-2006" />Template:Rp The Cariñosa, a Hispanic Filipino dance, is unofficially considered the country's national dance.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Popular indigenous dances include the Tinikling and Singkil, which include the rhythmic clapping of bamboo poles.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Present-day dances vary from delicate ballet<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> to street-oriented breakdancing.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|last=Villacruz |first=Basilio Esteban S. |date=July 24, 2014 |title=Philippine Dance in the American Period |url=http://www.ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/articles-on-c-n-a/article.php?igm=1&i=117 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140724234241/http://www.ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/articles-on-c-n-a/article.php?igm=1&i=117 |archive-date=July 24, 2014 |publisher=National Commission for Culture and the Arts}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Gasgonia |first=Dennis |date=December 8, 2020 |title=Olympic OK music to Pinoy breakdancers' ears — 'Chance to put PH on the map' |work=ABS-CBN News |url=https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/12/08/20/olympic-ok-music-to-pinoy-breakdancers-ears-chance-to-put-ph-on-the-map |access-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201208160028/https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/12/08/20/olympic-ok-music-to-pinoy-breakdancers-ears-chance-to-put-ph-on-the-map |archive-date=December 8, 2020}}</ref>

Rondalya music, with traditional mandolin-type instruments, was popular during the Spanish era.<ref name="Thompson-Batalla-2018" />Template:Rp<ref name="KCET-MasterRondalla" /> Spanish-influenced musicians are primarily bandurria-based bands with 14-string guitars.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref name="KCET-MasterRondalla">{{#invoke:cite|news|date=May 24, 2022 |title=This Master Rondalla Musician is Preserving the Sounds of Philippine Culture in L.A. |work=KCET |url=https://www.kcet.org/shows/artbound/this-master-rondalla-musician-is-preserving-the-sounds-of-philippine-culture-in-l-a |access-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220524195859/https://www.kcet.org/shows/artbound/this-master-rondalla-musician-is-preserving-the-sounds-of-philippine-culture-in-l-a |archive-date=May 24, 2022}}</ref> Kundiman developed during the 1920s and 1930s.<ref name="Ellingham-1999">Template:Cite book</ref> The American colonial period exposed many Filipinos to U.S. culture and popular music.<ref name="Ellingham-1999" /> Rock music was introduced to Filipinos during the 1960s and developed into Filipino rock (or Pinoy rock), a term encompassing pop rock, alternative rock, heavy metal, punk, new wave, ska, and reggae. Martial law in the 1970s produced Filipino folk rock bands and artists who were at the forefront of political demonstrations.<ref name="Murray-2016">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp The decade also saw the birth of the Manila sound and Original Pilipino Music (OPM).<ref name="Shunwei-2022">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Woods-2006" />Template:Rp Filipino hip-hop, which originated in 1979, entered the mainstream in 1990.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref name="Murray-2016" />Template:Rp Karaoke is also popular.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> From 2010 to 2020, Pinoy pop (P-pop) was influenced by K-pop and J-pop.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Newbould |first=Chris |date=October 24, 2022 |title=A brief history of P-pop, from anti-Marcos messages to the mainstream and back |language=en |work=The National |url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/music/2022/10/24/a-brief-history-of-p-pop-from-anti-marcos-messages-to-the-mainstream-and-back/ |access-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205213311/https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/music/2022/10/24/a-brief-history-of-p-pop-from-anti-marcos-messages-to-the-mainstream-and-back/ |archive-date=December 5, 2022}}</ref>

Locally produced theatrical drama became established during the late 1870s. Spanish influence around that time introduced Template:Lang plays (with music)<ref name="Liu-2016">Template:Cite book</ref> and Template:Langs, with dance. The plays became popular throughout the country,<ref name="Villaruz-2006" />Template:Rp and were written in a number of local languages.<ref name="Liu-2016" /> American influence introduced vaudeville and ballet.<ref name="Villaruz-2006" />Template:Rp Realistic theatre became dominant during the 20th century, with plays focusing on contemporary political and social issues.<ref name="Liu-2016" />

Literature

photograph of José Rizal

José Rizal's writings inspired the Philippine Revolution.

Philippine literature consists of works usually written in Filipino, Spanish, or English. Some of the earliest well-known works were created from the 17th to the 19th centuries.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> They include Template:Lang, an epic about an eponymous magical bird,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and Template:Lang by Tagalog author Francisco Balagtas.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> José Rizal wrote the novels Template:Lang and Template:Lang,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> both of which depict the injustices of Spanish colonial rule.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref>

Folk literature was relatively unaffected by colonial influence until the 19th century due to Spanish indifference. Most printed literary works during Spanish colonial rule were religious in nature, although Filipino elites who later learned Spanish wrote nationalistic literature.<ref name="Rodell-2002" />Template:Rp The American arrival began Filipino literary use of English<ref name="Rodell-2002" />Template:Rp and influenced the development of the Philippine comics industry that flourished from the 1920s through the 1970s.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> In the late 1960s, during the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos, Philippine literature was influenced by political activism; many poets began using Tagalog, in keeping with the country's oral traditions.<ref name="Rodell-2002" />Template:Rp

Philippine mythology has been handed down primarily through oral tradition;<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> popular figures are Maria Makiling,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Lam-ang,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> and the Sarimanok.<ref name="Rodell-2002" />Template:Rp<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> The country has a number of folk epics.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Wealthy families could preserve transcriptions of the epics as family heirlooms, particularly in Mindanao; the Maranao-language Darangen is an example.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Media

TV network logo, a multicolored triangle

People's Television Network logo

Philippine media primarily uses Filipino and English, although broadcasting has shifted to Filipino.<ref name="Brown-Ganguly-2003" /> Television shows, commercials, and films are regulated by the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Most Filipinos obtain news and information from television, the Internet,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Lucas |first=Daxim L. |date=September 13, 2011 |title=Filipinos seek info on Web; rich prefer newspapers |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://technology.inquirer.net/4101/filipinos-seek-info-on-web-rich-prefer-newspapers |access-date=August 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111116070555/http://technology.inquirer.net/4101/filipinos-seek-info-on-web-rich-prefer-newspapers/ |archive-date=November 16, 2011}}</ref> and social media.<ref name="CNNPH-SWSFacebook">{{#invoke:cite|news|date=June 30, 2019 |title=SWS: Facebook next to TV as Filipinos' top source of news |work=CNN Philippines |url=https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2019/6/30/facebook-news-source-filipino-adults.html |access-date=August 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190703110139/https://cnnphilippines.com/news/2019/6/30/facebook-news-source-filipino-adults.html |archive-date=July 3, 2019}}</ref> The country's flagship state-owned broadcast-television network is the People's Television Network (PTV).<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=PTV 4 |url=https://philippines.mom-rsf.org/en/media/detail/outlet/ptv-4/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221207200937/https://philippines.mom-rsf.org/en/media/detail/outlet/ptv-4/ |archive-date=December 7, 2022 |access-date=February 28, 2023 |website=Media Ownership Monitor |publisher=MOM Team, VERA Files, Reporters Without Borders, Global Media Registry}}</ref> ABS-CBN and GMA, both free-to-air, were the dominant TV networks;<ref name="BBC-Philippines-Profile">{{#invoke:cite|web|date=July 4, 2022 |title=Philippines country profile |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-15521300 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209103826/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-15521300 |archive-date=February 9, 2023 |access-date=February 9, 2023 |publisher=BBC News |at=Media}}</ref> before the May 2020 Philippine government denial of ABS-CBN's franchise renewal, it was the country's largest network.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Gutierrez |first=Jason |date=July 10, 2020 |title=Philippine Congress officially shuts down leading broadcaster |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/10/world/asia/philippines-congress-media-duterte-abs-cbn.html |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=August 22, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200710111029/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/10/world/asia/philippines-congress-media-duterte-abs-cbn.html |archive-date=July 10, 2020}}</ref> Philippine television dramas, known as Template:Langs and mainly produced by ABS-CBN and GMA, are also seen in several other countries.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Soliman |first1=Michelle Anne P. |date=April 10, 2022 |title=Pinoy teleseryes gain global following amid coronavirus pandemic |work=BusinessWorld |url=https://www.bworldonline.com/top-stories/2022/04/11/441537/pinoy-teleseryes-gain-global-following-amid-coronavirus-pandemic/ |access-date=February 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220410182249/https://www.bworldonline.com/top-stories/2022/04/11/441537/pinoy-teleseryes-gain-global-following-amid-coronavirus-pandemic/ |archive-date=April 10, 2022}}</ref>

Local film-making began in 1919 with the release of the first Filipino-produced feature film: Template:Lang (A Girl from the Country), directed by Jose Nepomuceno.<ref name="Armes-1987" /><ref name="Tofighian-2006" />Template:Rp Production companies remained small during the silent film era, but sound films and larger productions emerged in 1933. The postwar 1940s to the early 1960s are considered a high point for Philippine cinema. The 1962–1971 decade saw a decline in quality films, although the commercial film industry expanded until the 1980s.<ref name="Armes-1987" /> Critically acclaimed Philippine films include Template:Lang (Miracle) and Template:Lang (Gold, Silver, Death), both released in 1982.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=San Diego |first=Bayani Jr. |date=August 5, 2012 |title=Restoring Himala |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=http://entertainment.inquirer.net/52959/restoring-himala |access-date=October 29, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120806083921/http://entertainment.inquirer.net/52959/restoring-himala |archive-date=August 6, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Plaza |first=Gerry |date=August 16, 2012 |title=May Himala! Restored film proves real global classic |work=Yahoo! Philippines OMG! |url=http://ph.omg.yahoo.com/blogs/omgphnewsblog/may-himala-restored-film-proves-real-global-classic-013358351.html |access-date=October 29, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120820024727/http://ph.omg.yahoo.com/blogs/omgphnewsblog/may-himala-restored-film-proves-real-global-classic-013358351.html |archive-date=August 20, 2012}}</ref> Since the turn of the 21st century, the country's film industry has struggled to compete with larger-budget foreign films<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=February 16, 2012 |title=Philippine film industry in decline |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |agency=Agence France-Presse |url=https://entertainment.inquirer.net/30455/philippine-film-industry-in-decline |access-date=November 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120218044638/https://entertainment.inquirer.net/30455/philippine-film-industry-in-decline |archive-date=February 18, 2012}}</ref> (particularly Hollywood films).<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Conde |first=Carlos H. |date=February 11, 2007 |title=A bleak storyline for the Filipino film industry |work=International Herald Tribune |url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/02/11/yourmoney/movies12.php |access-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070213070634/http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/02/11/yourmoney/movies12.php |archive-date=February 13, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Malasig |first=Jeline |date=February 8, 2019 |title='We need resuscitation': Erik Matti laments state of local film industry |work=InterAksyon |url=https://interaksyon.philstar.com/trends-spotlights/2019/02/08/143748/erik-matti-state-philippine-movie-industry-facebook-post/ |access-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028083919/https://interaksyon.philstar.com/trends-spotlights/2019/02/08/143748/erik-matti-state-philippine-movie-industry-facebook-post/ |archive-date=October 28, 2020}}</ref> Art films have thrived, however, and several indie films have been successful domestically and abroad.<ref name="Forbes-CinemaGrowingFast">{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Ramoran-Malasig |first=Carol |date=March 1, 2018 |title=Philippine Cinema Is Growing Fast, And Is Moving Away From Typical Themes Of Poverty And Violence |language=en |work=Forbes |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/cmalasig/2018/03/01/philippine-cinema-more-than-poverty-porn-violence/?sh=726667123b5d |access-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230209153113/https://www.forbes.com/sites/cmalasig/2018/03/01/philippine-cinema-more-than-poverty-porn-violence/?sh=158d8b1a3b5d |archive-date=February 9, 2023}}</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Endo |first=Jun |date=April 29, 2019 |title=Philippine film foundation flipped the script for a 'dead' industry |work=Nikkei Asia |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Nikkei-Asia-Prizes/Philippine-film-foundation-flipped-the-script-for-a-dead-industry |access-date=February 28, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190428180208/https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Nikkei-Asia-Prizes/Philippine-film-foundation-flipped-the-script-for-a-dead-industry |archive-date=April 28, 2019}}</ref>

The Philippines has a large number of radio stations and newspapers.<ref name="BBC-Philippines-Profile" /> English broadsheets are popular among executives, professionals and students.<ref name="Thompson-2003" />Template:Rp Less-expensive Tagalog tabloids, which grew during the 1990s, are popular (particularly in Manila);<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> however, overall newspaper readership is declining in favor of online news.<ref name="CNNPH-SWSFacebook" /><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Mirasol |first1=Patricia B. |title=More smartphone-dependent Filipinos seek news on social media — Reuters report |url=https://www.bworldonline.com/world/2021/06/30/379239/more-smartphone-dependent-filipinos-seek-news-on-social-media-reuters-report/ |access-date=December 21, 2023 |work=BusinessWorld |date=June 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220524140112/https://www.bworldonline.com/world/2021/06/30/379239/more-smartphone-dependent-filipinos-seek-news-on-social-media-reuters-report/ |archive-date=May 24, 2022}}</ref> The top three newspapers, by nationwide readership and credibility,<ref name="Thompson-2003" />Template:Rp are the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Manila Bulletin, and The Philippine Star.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Although freedom of the press is protected by the constitution,<ref>Template:Cite constitution</ref> the country was listed as the seventh-most-dangerous country for journalists in 2022 by the Committee to Protect Journalists due to 13 unsolved murders of journalists.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Subingsubing |first1=Krixia |last2=Santos |first2=Tina G. |date=November 4, 2022 |title=PH still among most dangerous countries for journalists |language=en |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1689131/ph-still-among-the-most-dangerous-countries-for-journalists |access-date=February 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221103225817/https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1689131/ph-still-among-the-most-dangerous-countries-for-journalists |archive-date=November 3, 2022}}</ref>

The Philippine population are the world's top Internet users.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Lamb |first=Kate |date=February 1, 2019 |title=Philippines tops world internet usage index with an average 10 hours a day |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/feb/01/world-internet-usage-index-philippines-10-hours-a-day |access-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190201095445/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/feb/01/world-internet-usage-index-philippines-10-hours-a-day |archive-date=February 1, 2019}}</ref> In early 2021, 67 percent of Filipinos (73.91 million) had Internet access; the overwhelming majority used smartphones.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Magahis |first1=Coleen |last2=Santua |first2=James |date=June 18, 2021 |title=Filipinos' reliance on internet at an all-time high |work=Manila Standard |url=https://manilastandard.net/spotlight/ph-best-communication-service-providers/357427/filipinos-reliance-on-internet-at-an-all-time-high.html |access-date=November 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210618192106/https://manilastandard.net/spotlight/ph-best-communication-service-providers/357427/filipinos-reliance-on-internet-at-an-all-time-high.html |archive-date=June 18, 2021}}</ref>

Cuisine

Chunky soup in a white bowl

A bowl of fish sinigang

From its Malayo-Polynesian origins, traditional Philippine cuisine has evolved since the 16th century. It was primarily influenced by Hispanic, Chinese, and American cuisines, which were adapted to the Filipino palate.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Filipinos tend to prefer robust flavors,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> centered on sweet, salty, and sour combinations.<ref name="Aquino-Porter-2022">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp Regional variations exist throughout the country; rice is the general staple starch<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> but cassava is more common in parts of Mindanao.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref><ref>Template:Cite report</ref> Adobo is the unofficial national dish.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Other popular dishes include lechón, kare-kare, sinigang,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Cator |first=Currie |date=January 29, 2022 |title=Sinigang is world's best soup again; Lumpia among top side dishes |work=CNN Philippines |url=https://www.cnnphilippines.com/lifestyle/2022/1/29/Sinigang-Lumpia-Taste-Atlas-Awards-2021.html |access-date=February 19, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220129105341/https://www.cnnphilippines.com/lifestyle/2022/1/29/Sinigang-Lumpia-Taste-Atlas-Awards-2021.html |archive-date=January 29, 2022}}</ref> pancit, lumpia, and arroz caldo.<ref name="Anderson-2018">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Traditional desserts are Template:Lang (rice cakes), which include puto, suman, and bibingka.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Ingredients such as calamansi,<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> ube,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and pili are used in Filipino desserts.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|date=July 13, 2017 |title=Pili—The Delicious, Healthy Nut You've Never Heard Of |work=Vogue |url=https://www.vogue.com/article/pili-nuts-what-you-need-to-know |access-date=March 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170714040519/https://www.vogue.com/article/pili-nuts-what-you-need-to-know |archive-date=July 14, 2017}}</ref> The generous use of condiments such as patis, bagoong, and toyo impart a distinctive Philippine flavor.<ref name="Anderson-2018" /><ref name="Aquino-Porter-2022" />Template:Rp

Unlike other East or Southeast Asian countries, most Filipinos do not eat with chopsticks; they use spoons and forks.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Traditional eating with the fingers<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Lowry |first=Dave |date=January 6, 2016 |title=Hand-to-Mouth Combat: Experiencing a Kamayan Dinner at Hiro Asian Kitchen |work=St. Louis Magazine |url=https://www.stlmag.com/dining/hand-to-mouth-combat-experiencing-a-kamayan-dinner-at-hiro-asian-kitchen/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107011949/https://www.stlmag.com/dining/hand-to-mouth-combat-experiencing-a-kamayan-dinner-at-hiro-asian-kitchen/ |archive-date=November 7, 2017}}</ref> (known as Template:Lang) had been used in less urbanized areas,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp but has been popularized with the introduction of Filipino food to foreigners and city residents.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Sports and recreation

Team photo, with each blue-uniformed member wearing a gold medal

The Philippines men's national basketball team celebrating their 2015 Southeast Asian Games championship

Basketball, played at the amateur and professional levels, is considered the country's most popular sport.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> Other popular sports include boxing and billiards, boosted by the achievements of Manny Pacquiao and Efren Reyes.<ref name="Rood-2019" />Template:Rp<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Himmer |first=Alastair |date=June 5, 2010 |title=Pacquiao named fighter of the decade |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6541BX20100605 |access-date=July 25, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100605173159/https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6541BX20100605 |archive-date=June 5, 2010}}</ref> The national martial art is Arnis.<ref>Template:Cite PH act</ref> Template:Lang (cockfighting) is popular entertainment, especially among Filipino men, and was documented by the Magellan expedition.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Video gaming and esports are emerging pastimes,<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Lojo |first1=Michelle |title=Philippine esports gains traction in 2022 |url=https://www.philstar.com/sports/2022/12/29/2234051/philippine-esports-gains-traction-2022 |access-date=April 15, 2023 |work=The Philippine Star |date=December 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230410070659/https://www.philstar.com/sports/2022/12/29/2234051/philippine-esports-gains-traction-2022 |archive-date=April 10, 2023}}</ref><ref name="Booc-2019">Template:Cite journal</ref> with the popularity of indigenous games such as patintero, tumbang preso, luksong tinik, and piko declining among young people.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Booc-2019" />

The men's national football team has participated in one Asian Cup.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Leongson |first=Randolph B. |date=March 27, 2018 |title=History made as PH Azkals advance to 2019 AFC Asian Cup after beating Tajiks |language=en |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |url=https://sports.inquirer.net/290641/ph-azkals-advance-2019-afc-asia-cup-beating-tajiks |access-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109034121/https://sports.inquirer.net/290641/ph-azkals-advance-2019-afc-asia-cup-beating-tajiks |archive-date=November 9, 2020}}</ref> The women's national football team qualified for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup, their first World Cup, in January 2022.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Morales |first=Luisa |date=January 31, 2022 |title=Herstory: Filipinas outlast Chinese Taipei to seize historic Women's World Cup berth |work=The Philippine Star |url=https://www.philstar.com/sports/2022/01/31/2157582/herstory-filipinas-outlast-chinese-taipei-seize-historic-womens-world-cup-berth |access-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220130170703/https://www.philstar.com/sports/2022/01/31/2157582/herstory-filipinas-outlast-chinese-taipei-seize-historic-womens-world-cup-berth |archive-date=January 30, 2022}}</ref> The Philippines has participated in every Summer Olympic Games since 1924, except when they supported the American-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> It was the first tropical nation to compete at the Winter Olympic Games, debuting in 1972.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|news|last=Chia |first=Nicole |date=February 19, 2018 |title=Winter Olympics: Even outsiders can break the ice |work=The Straits Times |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/even-outsiders-can-break-the-ice |access-date=July 30, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180224080645/https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/even-outsiders-can-break-the-ice |archive-date=February 24, 2018}}</ref><ref>Template:Cite report</ref> In 2021, the Philippines received its first-ever Olympic gold medal with weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz's victory in Tokyo.<ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|last1=Araullo |first1=Atom |author-link1=Atom Araullo |date=November 4, 2021 |title=Anatomy of Philippines' first Olympic gold medal |url=https://pcij.org/article/7371/anatomy-of-philippines-first-olympic-gold-medal |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211104071057/https://pcij.org/article/7371/anatomy-of-philippines-first-olympic-gold-medal |archive-date=November 4, 2021 |publisher=Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism |access-date=April 23, 2023}}</ref>

See also

{{#invoke:Portal|portal|Philippines|Asia|Islands}}

• Outline of the PhilippinesTemplate:Clear

Notes

Template:Notelist <references group="lower-alpha" />

External links

• Government of the Philippines Template:Webarchive
• Official Gazette Template:Webarchive
• "Philippines" profile at BBC News
• "Philippines" at UCB Libraries (archived May 21, 2011)
• Template:OSM relation
• Template:Wikiatlas
• Filipiniana.net – Free digital library and a research portal (archived December 17, 2008)

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