To begin with, an Ilongga named Gina, who was a third-year high school student at the time, said that she was shocked when she found out that she was pregnant. Immediately, she had to drop out of high school to find for a source of income to provide for her family, like washing clothes. Gina is not the only one facing these challenges as teenage pregnancy, extensive and pervasive in nature, has been a major concern in the Philippines, for there is an increase in the number of Filipinas dealing with pregnancy at an early age every day (Paunan, 2019).
After some time, as concerns were raised by the Commission on Population about teenage and unplanned pregnancies, it has been specified that the number of Filipinas who have given birth in the country every day is 500, in approximation, as more adolescents involve themselves in premarital sex, forcing girls to leave school, jeopardizing their economic prospects and excluding them from other opportunities, just like what happened to Gina. Wealth quintile, region, and education are the three major factors which influence individuals to become involved in early pregnancy and motherhood, which is why early childbearing is unacceptably higher among the poor and the least educated (Recide, 2014). Then, in support of this claim, according to Natividad (2013), who conducted a wider study about the trend of increasing proportions of teenage mothers who are financially-stable, who have better education and are living in urban areas, as a means to observe the issue in all socioeconomic classes, concluded that interventions designed to help mitigate or reverse the trend should be tailored to the circumstances leading to early pregnancy that may be specific to these subgroups, for they may be very sensitive to a particular proposed solution.
With this in mind, age-appropriate sexuality education must be carried out in the pre-adolescent years before teenagers leave school, considering the least educated Filipinas, specifically those with elementary or lower educational attainment, experience teenage pregnancy the most, as the study found out. Eventually, this group will require specific services and family planning programs. As soon as these concerns become the current thought of the majority, the Department of Education (DepEd) has been doing its utmost efforts not to overlook the importance of integrating sexuality education lessons in public elementary and high schools with an aim to restrain the occurrences of teenage pregnancy, as well as population growth and sexual diseases.
The mentioned department has been simultaneously working on the enhancement of policy guidelines regarding the implementation of the Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) integrated with subjects and extra-curricular activities as a means of preventing teenage pregnancies in the country. All in all, executing sexual education means empowering adolescent girls with information on sexual and reproductive health appropriate to their age and development, and protecting more young Filipinos through education. Finally, it is a call for action to invest in opportunities for adolescent girls.
Reference
- Paunan, J. C. R. (2019, December 15). The risks of teenage pregnancy. Retrieved February 2, 2020, from https://pia.gov.ph/features/articles/1026925
- Recide, R. (2014, August 28). One in Ten Young Filipino Women Age 15 to 19 Is Already A Mother or Pregnant With First Child (Final Results from the 2013 National Demographic and Health Survey). Retrieved February 2, 2020, from https://psa.gov.ph/tags/teenage-pregnancy
- Natividad, J. (2013, April 23). View of Teenage Pregnancy in the Philippines: Trends, Correlates and Data Sources: Journal of the ASEAN Federation of Endocrine Societies. Retrieved February 2, 2020, from https://asean-endocrinejournal.org/index.php/JAFES/article/view/49/477
- Montemayor, T. (2019, April 4). Integrating sex education in schools to empower learners. Retrieved February 2, 2020, from https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1066447
- Villamor, M. (2018, March 23). In the Philippines, information key to halting teenage pregnancy. Retrieved February 2, 2020, from https://www.unfpa.org/news/philippines-information-key-halting-teenage-pregnancy
