ALARMING TREND | Teenage pregnancies in Philippines continue to rise, more protection plans urged

February 8, 2021 , 11:28 AM

(February 8, 2021) – The Philippines recorded a 7% increase in pregnancies aged 15 and below in 2019, the Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM) reported on Sunday, the ninth straight year the figure has surged.

POPCOM said the number of Filipino minors who gave birth in 2019 increased to 62,510, which was slightly higher than the 62,341 count in 2018.

“In 2019, 2,411 girls considered as very young adolescents aged 10 to 14 gave birth or almost seven every day. This was a three-fold increase from 2000, when only 755 from the said age group gave birth,” said POPCOM in a statement.

The group also noted that one out of every 10 pregnancies in the country since 2011 has consistently been among teenagers.

CALABARZON had the most teenage pregnancies in the country in 2019 with 8,008. This was followed by the National Capital Region (NCR) with 7,546 and Central Luzon with 7,523.

Outside Luzon, the highest number of teenage pregnancies was recorded in Northern Mindanao with 4,747, followed by Davao with 4,551, Cebu or Central Visayas with 4,541, and Cotabato with 3,394.

POPCOM executive director Juan Antonio Perez III said they look to work with various government agencies and local government units (LGUs) to provide more protection measures. He added they have already prioritized teenage pregnancy reduction as an important landmark in the roadmap to reduce poverty.

“As a national and social emergency, the spread of teenage pregnancy across the archipelago still persists at an alarming rate,” said Perez. “This requires more than a whole-of-government approach. Thus, we are calling on the private sector, LGUs, development partners, and relevant government agencies to collaborate closely with us in arresting this social menace grappling our youth.”

Inadequate sex education and lack of access to birth control have been tagged as focal reasons for teenage pregnancies in the Philippines, a country known for still-conservative views on sex.

POPCOM said several LGUs have already enlisted their participation to The Challenge Initiative, a tripartite partnership with international foundations, to strategically tackle teenage pregnancy in many levels of communities all over the country.

The University of the Philippines Population Institute last year predicted a baby boom in 2021, with an estimated 751,000 additional unplanned pregnancies because of the conditions created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

(Kiko Demigillo/PM)

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