Teenage Pregnancy A “National Social Emergency”
TEENAGE PREGNANCY – Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia said that teenage pregnancy is now a “national social emergency”.
A report from Inquirer states that Pernia further emphasized that adolescent birth rates over the past decade raised to the point that it has become a national concern.
According to a demographic health survey, 15 to 18% adolescents became mothers in three regions of Mindanao. Economic costs for adolescent females is currently staggering.
Pernia said that at around ₱ 24 billion and ₱42 billion of the women’s lifetime earnings lost to early bearing of the child. He further said that the danger in not dealing with this issue would eventually lead to a lot of families condemned to perpetual intergenerational poverty.
Pernia then said that he commits to advocate for President Duterte to make an executive order which acknowledges teen pregnancy as a national social emergency.
As per the report, Pernia’s remarks were delivered at a summit held in Pasay City that unites development, health and education authorities to tackle the issue.
He also urged the lawmakers to deal with the matter swiftly, which has great effects on the health of both teenage mothers and their children and is one of the primary cause behind dropout rates, which also overtakes financial issues.
Pernia said that the issue also affects the core of the development of the nation since the state of the youth today also affect the state of the future of the country
A National Demographic Health Survey issued in 2017 stated that at about 9% of women between ages 15 to 19 have begun childbearing, which could possibly increase further when one zeroes in on the most endangered or weakened populations.
10% of teens in rural areas, on the other hand, began childbearing and could rise further in regions like Davao, Northern Mindanao, and Soccskargen.
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