Globally, 14-16 million adolescent girls between 15 and 19 years
old give birth every year and pregnancy-related deaths are the leading cause of
death for girls at such young ages. Honing home, the 2011 annual report of
the UNFPA-Philippines office reports that teen pregnancies in the country rose
by 70 percent in a span of 10 years from 114,205 in 1999 to 195,662 in 2009. NSO data also revealed
that the number of teenage mothers who gave birth to their second (and third,
fourth, and even their fifth) baby during their teenage years likewise
increased in the last 10 years, according to data presented at a press
conference in Quezon City by Carmelita Ericta, administrator and civil
registrar general of the National Statistics Office.
At the end of the conference
the call was made for collective actions to address the issue. Benjamin de
Leon, president of the Forum for Family Planning and Development, an NGO
working on adolescent health issues, expressed alarm that almost 10 percent of
all Filipino women aged 15-19 have already given birth. “This is a reality that
we must address, he said.
There is an urgency for all sectors “to work together to help
address adolescent reproductive health issues and teen pregnancy because of the
health and economic implications to the country,” he said. “A high rate of teen
pregnancy also means a high risk for maternal deaths among our young girls
Hence in response to this issue, a 30-60 minutes campaign regarding
how to increase the awareness of female adolescents in Teenage Pregnancy will
be conducted which comprises the description of teenage pregnancy, causes of
teenage pregnancy, ways to avoid teenage pregnancy, the disadvantages of
teenage pregnancy to the mother and child.
