Group alarmed over 100 M Phl population

MANILA, Philippines - Family planning advocates on Friday expressed alarm over the Philippine population’s reaching 100 million, saying this does not augur well for the country’s economic growth.

Ben de Leon, president of The Forum for Family Planning and Development, noted that having such a large population would put further strain on the country’s limited resources.

“As it is right now, the government can no longer give them jobs. That’s the reason many are leaving the country... So how much more if you have such a big population?” he pointed out.

According to the Commission on Population (PopCom), the country’s population will hit 100 million at 12:06 a.m. tomorrow based on its linear analysis of the estimates given by the Philippine Statistics Office that last July 1 there were 99.7 million Filipinos. This is up from the 97.35 million population last year.

De Leon underscored the need for the government to focus on the poor who account for 26 million of the population.

“They should be able to plan their family and not just have indiscriminate sex. They should be able to get the right information on family planning, including services, because a ballooning population has implications on the economy,” he added.

For Junice Melgar, executive director of Likhaan, what is more alarming is that a majority of the population belongs to the reproductive age group of 15 to 24 years old. This could further drive the population upward.

“If the rich comprise a majority of the population, you have nothing to worry about. But various poverty incidence surveys show that 26 million of them are poor, so your economy will hardly take off,” she said.

“What is worse is that our economic growth is inequitable. It benefits the rich but there is hardly any improvement in the lives of the poor,” she added.

But for Health Secretary Enrique Ona, the increase in population is a “welcome development” as health programs are already in place such as the Department of Health’s efforts to have all Filipinos enrolled in the Philippine Health Insurance Corp.