‘Teen pregnancies bad for RP future’

The country’s future is threatened by early marriages and unplanned pregnancies among the Filipino youth, the Population Commission (PopCom) said yesterday.

PopCom executive director Tomas Osias said teenage pregnancies tend to hold back young women from completing their education, eventually hindering their ability to develop their potential or attend to the needs of their children.

"Unintended marriages and unplanned pregnancies often snuff out the chances of young people to have a secure future," he said.

Osias, citing a State of the Population Report of the United Nations Population Fund, said that seven percent of teenage girls aged 15 to 19 would become mothers before they reach the age of 20. Teenagers in rural areas have twice the chance of getting pregnant compared to those living in the city.

The report also showed that teenagers who become pregnant often resort to abortion due to "forces of circumstance" or the influence of other people. Abortion in young mothers aged 15 to 24 accounts for 17 percent of the cases of induced abortion in the Philippines.

"Our population will continue to be young in the coming years, and this means it will continue to be at risk of a high incidence of teenage pregnancies," Osias said.

He added that government and non-government organizations must reach out to the youth by providing them with enough information about reproductive health. Parents should also have an honest discussion with their children about sexuality.

"Young people are crucial in a developing country like the Philippines (where) the changes in the conditions of life will depend on their active participation," Osias said.