‘Proper family planning to address Philippine poverty’

MANILA, Philippines — The implementation of the country’s reproductive health and family planning programs are crucial in achieving the goal of eradicating extreme poverty moving forward.

In a recent conference with the Partners in Population and Development and the United Nations Population Fund, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Chua said reproductive health and family planning programs are critical in the long-term vision to eliminate extreme poverty by 2040.

Chua said the government has rolled out policies and programs which are aligned to the goals of the International Conference on Population and Development Program of Action and Sustainable Development Goals.

One of these programs is the Philippine Population Management Program 2017 to 2022 which serves as the blueprint for implementing population-related programs, projects and activities.

It aims to help couples and parents achieve their desired number and spacing of children, and reduce the incidence of teenage pregnancies in the country.

The government is also promoting the attainment of zero unmet need for modern family planning and the implementation of the National Program on Population and Family Planning.

Similarly, the National Safe Motherhood Program aims to provide cost-effective pregnancy services to Filipino women to curb rising maternal and child mortality rates.

“Educational institutions have integrated comprehensive sexuality education and adolescent reproductive health in their curriculum. This provides critical guidance to the youth on the cognitive, physical, and social aspects of sexuality, and their reproductive health concerns,” Chua said.

To address the evolving reproductive health challenges in the Philippines, the government also strengthened its social protection programs for teenage mothers and their children.

These programs aim to widen the access of teenage mothers to nutrition and mental health support services, and provide opportunities for them to return to school and find gainful work or livelihood.