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Paula Bronstein / Getty Images
John Harris stands next to his family: wife Remedios (who holds Joshua, 3), Jamie, 11, John, 16, and Joyce, 8, at the small space where they live under a bridge in Manila, Philippines on August 21, 2012 . John is a construction worker making 250 pesos ($6) a day. The family live in a small space under a bridge alongside many other impoverished families.
Paula Bronstein / Getty Images
Irish Romes, 19, holds her 2-week-old baby Jay at the place where she lives with her family next to a highway in the slums of Binondo, Manila on August 21, 2012.
Manila's population of 20 million people is rising by approximately a quarter of a million every year. Due to overcrowding a third of the Filipino capital's residents are forced to live on any bit of spare land they can manage, often in makeshift settlements under bridges, beside railway lines and even in cemeteries.
Large families are common in a conservative Catholic county that is pushing the government's already weak social care system to its limit.
See more of Getty Images photographer Paula Bronstein's work on population issues in the Philippines in Tuesday's post: Mothers give birth in an already overpopulated Manila.
Look back at PhotoBlog posts on Filipino housing issues and on the world's seven billion population milestone, reached in 2011.
Paula Bronstein / Getty Images
A boy looks out from his home in a congested slum area of Manila on August 21, 2012.
Paula Bronstein / Getty Images
A man stands next to the door of his room under a bridge in Manila on August 21, 2012. Families cram into small rooms under a bridge so they can live for free.
Paula Bronstein / Getty Images
A man washes clothes as children look out from the small room under a bridge within which they live on August 22, 2012 in Manila.
Paula Bronstein / Getty Images
A woman holds her daughter in their makeshift shack in the Binondo slums of Manila, which they rent for 1,000 pesos ($24) a month.
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Leave a Comment:
I couldn't imagine having to live like that. So sad. So poor.
40% of the population lives on $4 a day or less. I visited there two times in 2010 and found the people very friendly, quite optimistic and hard working. Sadly, other than rent and medical care, the cost of things in food stores and malls is the same or higher priced than here at Walmart ! But, the housing for the 40%, as you see can be a 10x14 room, with no window glass or screeens, for 3 people with the bath shared with 5 other apartments for $25-40 a month. Medical and dental services are cheap and very good with many doctors training in the U.S. for a few years. I think its a wonderful place to spend yout vacation dollars or travel to build a school/home/medical center with a group.
Cortical Foundation has put hundreds of these peoples kids in school. WE NEED YOUR HELP. See our website cortical.org/studentfund
Cortical Foundation is a charity that helps kids of these people go to school and set up small business for the families to earn their food. . You can see some of our high school and college students at www.cortical.org/studentfund In 5 years, we have given over $425,000 and put hundrds of kids in school. We were a CNN Hero nomineee last year. You can help them with a PayPal donation to StudentFund@cortical.org The need ifor food, shelter, medicine, school so great.
Good for you.Stop advertising on a forum.
The Catholic church preaches that birth control is wrong.Any educated person can see the outcome by viewing these pictures.