Sex education is key: Sharon Garin seeks framework to prevent teenage pregnancies

By Billy Begas

AAMBIS-OWA party-list Rep. Sharon Garin on Monday renewed her call for the passage of a measure seeking to reduce the number of adolescent pregnancies and provide a social protection program for teenage mothers.

Based on data from the Commission on Population and Development (PopCom), Garin said between 2011 and 2019, pregnancies in the 10-14 age group increased by 50%, with an average of 530 adolescent girls become pregnant daily.

Garin said the country will continue to suffer economic losses if this crisis is not averted. In 2017, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) revealed that income forgone due to teenage pregnancies has reached P33 billion a year.

Under Garin’s proposed Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Act (House Bill 6426), the National Program of Action on the Prevention of Adolescent Pregnancies shall be established and will serve as the national framework for inter-agency and inter-sectoral collaboration to address the various health, cultural, socio-economic and institutional determinants of adolescent pregnancy.

PopCom, in coordination with national and local government agencies and civic organizations, shall spearhead the program.

It shall include the organization of regional and local information and service delivery network for adolescent health and development, comprehensive sexual education, the establishment of adolescent centers, social protection, and programs for parents and guardians of adolescent parents.

Garin said her proposal will complement laws such as Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012 (Republic Act 10354) and Universal Healthcare Act (RA 11223).

It provides better access to reproductive health services for adolescents, which includes modern family planning methods with proper counseling by trained service providers in public and private facilities.

The bill is pending with the House Committee on Youth and Sports Development since December 1, 2020.

Source: Latest Politics News Today (Politics.com.ph)