Pacquiao to lead Philippines’ fight against poverty

Manny Pacquiao, the Philippines’ celebrated former boxing champion, will lead the government body responsible for fighting poverty. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. appointed him coordinator of the National Anti-Poverty Commission, his first Cabinet position after years in politics.

Pacquiao will connect the president with representatives of 14 vulnerable sectors, including farmers, fishermen, Indigenous people and informal workers. He will also work with departments such as Health and Social Development to plan national campaigns aimed at reducing poverty and addressing the demands of disadvantaged communities.

Marcos called Pacquiao “a champion of the Filipino people” and said the two would work to bring government programs closer to communities. Official statistics published in August put poverty at a historic low of about 9.7%, equivalent to roughly 11 million people. Manila says 6.5 million Filipinos escaped poverty between 2023 and 2025 and wants to lower the rate to 8% to 9% by 2028.

Pacquiao served in Congress from 2010 to 2016 and in the Senate from 2016 to 2022. He ran for president in 2022, when Marcos won. Pacquiao is also training for a possible return to boxing before the end of the year. He has described leaving school at age 10 to sell bread and support his family, and has said his family sometimes had no food and could only drink water.

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A champion of the Filipino people