THE Philippine economy loses a whopping P33 billion annually due to foregone economic opportunities of teenage mothers, according to the Commission on Population (Popcom).
At the sidelines of the launch of the 2018 World Population Report of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Popcom Executive Director Juan Antonio Perez III told reporters that this is only an estimate of the opportunity cost of having a child at a very young age.
Perez also said if the mother of a teenager was a teen mom herself, it is likely that the teenager will also bear children at an early age. If they are poor, this will also make it difficult for them to get out of the cycle of poverty, causing what is called intergenerational poverty.
“This represents opportunity lost because they did not complete their studies, they had children early. There’s a finding [that is]…general among all families that showed if you have another child in your family and if you are poor, you don’t have savings; but if you have savings, another child in the family will take up 60 percent of your savings,” Perez said.
“If you’re in the higher quintile, 30 percent. Among the rich, it only affects 15 percent of their savings, annually. Your savings are affected by having another child. The poor have no savings so they have no access,” he added.
Incomplete
Perez said because of pregnancy and the demands of raising a child, teenage mothers are unable to complete their education. This leads them to get lower-paying jobs.
Apart from the costs, Perez said having more teenage pregnancies could also lead to a higher number of infant deaths based on a 2010 survey done by the National Statistics Office, which is now part of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
Perez said that off the bat, this could be explained by the level of maturity of teen mothers and their knowledge about how to raise children.
The PSA, he said, has not released any updated data on this, but Perez hopes that by next year, this could be included in the list of special surveys that the agency will conduct.
“Culturally you’re not prepared, economically you’re having issues. So what we’re aiming for is to avoid pregnancy at a younger age, to have fewer children, to have children that you can afford to raise,” Perez said.
Hard to hit
This target is becoming difficult to hit even when teenage pregnancies, between 15 and 19 years old, have gone down. Perez said this is because pregnancy of 10- to 14-year-olds have been on the rise.
He said that while there are about 2,000 children aged 10 to 14 years old who got pregnant last year, the trend has shown that the numbers are posting increases of about 100 to 200 children annually.
According to the UNFPA, the Philippines is the second-largest country among the 10 Asean members, and its population is fast growing with the highest total fertility rate in the Asean. Over half of Filipinos are 24 years of age or below.
Left behind
However, Iori Kato, UNFPA country representative in the Philippines, said many Filipino adolescents and youth have been left behind.
Among the challenges: 49 percent of unmarried, sexually active women and 17 percent of married women have an unmet need for family planning, the 2017 National Demographic and Health survey revealed. About 1 in 5 girls aged 19 is either pregnant or has given birth.
“For this youthful country to reap a demographic dividend, there is an imminent need to invest more in health, education and employability of young people and on gender equality,” Kato said.
“Millions of Filipinos will benefit from having the power to choose whether and when to have children, and how many children to have. If you can plan your family, you can plan your life,” he added.
The report classifies all countries in the world by the current dynamics of their populations’ fertility. It makes specific recommendations for policies and programs that would help each country increase reproductive choices.
In the Philippines, UNFPA looks forward to continued partnership with the government and all stakeholders through the newly approved 8th Country Programme for 2019-2023, in ensuring that all Filipinos, especially those furthest behind, have access to sexual and reproductive-health information and services, and thereby make choices on some of the most significant and intimate aspects of their lives.
Access to info
The UNFPA Country Programme will continue to support the acceleration of universal access to quality reproductive health care, particularly modern contraceptives, as well as comprehensive sexuality education in accordance with international standards.
Technical assistance will also be provided toward dismantling those barriers—whether economic, social or institutional—that inhibit free and informed choice.
Image credits: (C) Ocusfocus | Dreamstime.com