CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga – Commission on Population (POPCOM) has expressed full support for Republic Act 10354 or Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Law (RPRH) in a bid to reduce cases of teenage pregnancy in the next five years.
POPCOM Regional Director Eleanor M. Cura emphasized the vital role of RPRH Law in decreasing the swelling increase of cases of teenage pregnancy among 10-19 years old adolescent in Central Luzon.
“RPRH Law guarantees universal access to methods on contraception, fertility control, sexual education and maternal care,” Cura explained.
“We implement various program strategies of under the three major components: Responsible Parenthood and Family Planning (RP-FP), Adolescent Health and Youth Development (AHYD) and Population and Development (PopDev) Integration,” she cited.
According to Cura, RP-FP aims to intensify the demand generation and family planning service delivery at the community level to achieve zero unmet need for family planning.
Under the AHYD program, there will be a comprehensive sexuality education in schools and in alternative learning systems (communities) emphasizing the importance of Values Education to prevent unplanned pregnancies especially to the youth.
She also reiterated the importance of information dissemination, seminars and fora for parents, youth leaders and other adult groups to effectively guide adolescents in forming responsible sexuality.
Meanwhile, PopDev seeks to assist developmental sectors and local government units in establishing, analyzing and using comprehensive demographic and socio-economic database.
RPRH aims to provide families with the right information and access to modern family planning methods and services that can help them properly plan their family, in terms of how many child they want and the proper spacing of children, to assure the child’s health, education and better living condition. (CLJD/TJBM PIA-3)