CEDAW/C/PHI/4 English Page 63 sports and other cultural opportunities for the very poor, women in particular, seem far-fetched. Policy/institutional developments 256. Since 1992, a number of institutions have been established to study the multifaceted poverty situation in the country and to design a holistic and integrated strategy to address the problem. 257. The Presidential Commission to Fight Poverty was established in 1992 to implement broad-based efforts on poverty. The Commission followed a highly consultative process of consultations at the provincial, regional and national levels with sectoral government agencies and non-governmental agencies and, in the process, directed inter-agency efforts towards common objectives and undertakings. 258. The Presidential Council for Countryside Development was also created in 1992 with the task of identifying and addressing the problems of regions, provinces and areas that lag behind in terms of economic growth. It was mandated to encourage local administrators to focus their development efforts on potential growth areas for economic development. 259. The Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor is responsible for linking the urban poor to government services and programmes. 260. While there are a few women non-governmental organizations coordinating and working with these commissions, their policies and programmes have yet to make serious and committed efforts at targeting and benefiting women and men equally. 261. In line with the Medium-term Philippine Development Plan, 1995-1998, the President launched the Social Reform Agenda as a centrepiece programme of the Government. Among other things, the programme provides avenues for intervention for women's needs in terms of capability-building for productivity skills and livelihood, services for women in especially difficult circumstances, and information and services for family planning, responsible parenthood and reproductive health. The Minimum Basic Needs Approach 262. The adoption of the Minimum Basic Needs Approach has been started recently, focusing on those needs related to survival (health, nutrition, sanitation and water), security (shelter, income, peace and order) and empowerment (basic education and literacy and participation). The approach defines well-being as the household's ability to meet basic needs, while poverty is defined as the sustained inability of a household to do so. It allows the development managers to use other multisectoral and multidisciplinary approaches towards economic empowerment. Since it has been established that women bear the brunt of poverty and have less access to basic services, productive resources and employment, the Approach enlightens development managers, enabling them to draw up realistic plans for women's empowerment. /...