“Time to act fast and vigorously on family planning” – Ben de Leon, The Forum

PRESS RELEASE
 “Time to act fast and vigorously on family planning” – Ben de Leon, The Forum

The Forum for Family Planning and Development, Inc. (The Forum) supports the aggressive stance of incoming President Rodrigo Duterte in implementing the country’s reproductive health and family planning law that is also anchored on his new government’s economic agenda of eliminating inequality and poverty. The Forum commended President Duterte for his appointment of Dr. Ernesto Pernia as Secretary of Socio Economic Planning and Director General, NEDA. He will be a strong pillar to his Administration as he will craft economic policies that will benefit the country especially the poor. Pernia is a member of the Board of Trustee of The Forum.

Benjamin De Leon, president of The Forum, said he welcomes the fresh pronouncements of the incoming government as “sensible and well-timed especially now that the Philippines is experiencing a slowing population growth rate and Filipinos recognize the importance of family planning.”

“Enabling couples to phase the births and plan the number of children they want to have, to afford and to provide for by giving them free family planning methods that they want to use and educating them about the benefits of a well-planned family is an opportune moment to grasp,” said De Leon.

“The RPRH Law allows public health centers to provide family planning methods and contraceptives such as condoms and pills to couples and individuals who need them,” said De Leon. “The Law also allows the teaching of sex education in schools to make children and young people understand about sex, sexuality and reproductive health in a responsible manner that in the long term would influence them to make intelligent decisions later in life.”

He added that enabling the country’s enormous youth population of making more sensible life decisions will have longstanding effects on the country’s social and economic development.

De Leon said it is an opportune time to increase the momentum of the country’s family planning and reproductive health program by providing education and services to a wider segment of the population.

“From the very start, the welfare of Filipinos, whatever beliefs they have and faiths that they practice, is foremost in the goals of the country’s family planning and reproductive health program,” he said.

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