The province of Negros Occidental logged the highest number of adolescent pregnancy cases in Western Visayas.

Based on data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Negros Occidental accounted for 2,912 or 34.63 percent of the 8,409 live births from females aged 10 to 19 years old in 2020.

Iloilo province recorded the second highest cases at 2,317 (27.55 percent) and followed by Capiz with 956 cases (11.377 percent).

On the other hand, Guimaras and Bacolod City registered the lowest cases at 237 (2.82 percent) and 184 (2.19 percent ), respectively. The figures were even lower than the national acceptable rate of 4 percent.

The data were presented by the Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM-6) on Monday, July 19.

Of the total number in 2020, 2,842 females were minors or belonged to the 10-17 age group. The figure was equivalent to approximately 7.8 births per day.

The youngest case was an 11-yearl old female from Silay City, Negtos Occidental.

Three 12-year-old females, eleven 13-year-old females, and seventy nine 14-year-old females gave birth in the region in 2020.

Citing a report from Plan-International.Org, POPCOM-6 attributed early pregnancies to various institutional, family, peer, media, and individual factors.

“Some of these are the lack of information or education about sexual and reproductive health and rights, inadequate access to services tailored to young people, social pressure to marry, sexual violence, and early and force marriage, among others.”

“The direct implications of adolescent pregnancy are emerging cases of maternal and child mortality, health risks, and complications due to young bodies, some young mothers resort to unsafe abortion, stigma or rejection by parents and peers, and are more likely to experience violence within a marriage or partnership.”

POPCOM-6 Regional Director Harold Alfred P. Marshall appealed to “all stakeholders to continue to invest and ensure that Filipino adolescents are protected and their potential developed to decrease the cases of adolescent or unintended pregnancies.”

“Also for the young mothers to pursue and continue to develop themselves as they build their own families,” he added.

According to Marshall, pregnancies in minors may lead them to have families and unions that they are ill-equipped to face the challenge of rearing children and locking them into the vicious cycle of intergenerational poverty and violence.

“POPCOM-Region VI will continue to assist the Local Government Units, partner agencies to develop well-informed, empowered, healthy, and responsible adolescents,” he assured.IMT