A family planning policy recommendation based on forecasted demand for modern contraceptives of currently married women in the Philippines
Date
2006-10
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Abstract
Family Planning (FP) programs were initiated in the Philippines in the year 1969 through Executive Order No. 171 with the aim of addressing the problem of the rapid growth of the Philippine population (DOH, 2002). Together with various foreign and local organizations, the Philippine government was able to provide contraceptives for free. It has now been 37 years since then and yet the country still faces the problem of overpopulation. Adding to this problem is the imminent withdrawal of foreign assistance for contraceptives. By the year 2008, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the biggest donor of free contraceptives to the Philippines, will withdraw its assistance to the Philippine government.
Using data from the 2004 and 2005 Family Planning Survey (FPS), this study aims to forecast the budgetary requirements for government, if it were to achieve contraceptive self-reliance (CSR). These projections will be based on an analysis of demand for contraceptives among currently married women ages 15 to 49. This study examines the possibility of the government charging user fess for selected groups of women. This study discovers that government needs about 600 million pesos per year to achieve CSR. While this represents a 500 percent increase over current spending levels, the study also finds that government may be able to raise these amounts given an appropriate user fee scheme.
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Keywords
Family planning, MEDICINE::Surgery::Obstetrics and women's diseases::Reproductive health, Contraceptives, Fertility control, Population management, Public health