Our Work in the Philippines

The Philippines has seen a considerable increase in the use of family planning over the last 30 years. In 1973, use of all family planning methods was recorded at 17 percent; by 2003 it had risen to 49 percent. Modern contraceptive use increased from 11 to 33 percent during that same time period. Recently, however, this trend has lost its strength with the past five years seeing only a 2 percent increase in use. The stagnating upward trend exists alongside a number of variables that would seem to contribute to continued increasing demand and use of family planning: the Philippines has the fourth highest fertility rate in Asia, averaging 3.5 children per woman; the majority of Filipino women (81 percent) would like to delay or prevent future childbearing; more than half (62 percent) of married women have been sterilized or do not want to have additional children; and overall, seventeen percent of married women have unmet need for family planning, with this number rising to 20 percent in rural areas. In regard to access to modern methods, 29 percent of users obtain their method through the private sector (up from 26 percent in 1998), while 67 percent go to the public sector, down from 72 percent in 1998.