Nearly half of sexually active unmarried women in the Philippines have an unmet need for family planning, according to the 2025 National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS), a gap population officials say has gone unaddressed for too long.
Among married women, unmet need inched up to 12.5% in 2025, even as modern contraceptive use in the group climbed to 44.5% from 41.8% in 2022.
“Reproductive agency is not truly universal if it is enjoyed only by some,” said Lolito R. Tacardon, deputy executive director of the Commission on Population and Development (CPD).
The figures surfaced as the country marked World Contraception Day on September 26, with the CPD joining Bayer Philippines Inc., the Philippine Society for Responsible Parenthood Inc. (PSRP), Jhpiego Philippines and the Forum for Family Planning and Development to examine barriers to contraceptive access.
Philippine Statistics Authority data show the fertility rate has dropped to 1.7 children per woman, the lowest on record. Tacardon said the decline makes family planning more relevant, not less, with the emphasis now on women’s rights over their own reproductive decisions.
“Hence the focus now is on how we would be able to support the reproductive agency and choices of women,” he said.
Pills remain the most widely used modern method among women aged 15 to 49 at 11.6%, trailed by female sterilization at 4.6% and injectables at 3.4%. The CPD pointed to myths, stigma, shortages of preferred commodities and too few trained providers as obstacles that persist.
Poorer and less-educated Filipinos are hit hardest, the agency said, often ending up with more children than they want.
“We need to reach those who are poor, marginalized, and those living in isolated and disadvantaged areas,” said CPD Undersecretary Lisa Grace Bersales.
Adolescents face their own hurdles. Teen pregnancy stands at 4.9% nationwide but nearly doubles to 9.4% in the poorest households, the CPD said.
Dr. Juan Antonio Perez III, vice president of the Forum for Family Planning and Development, said young people are sometimes questioned at clinics even where services exist, and warned of rising HIV cases among those aged 15 to 24.
“Girls under 16 today suffer the greatest deprivation of their sexual and reproductive health and rights, with almost 13,000 victims of possible statutory rape below 16 years old in 2024 alone,” Perez said.
“Choice is not real if only a few can afford it. Access is not real if judgment stands at the clinic door,” he added.
Misinformation online is compounding the problem, said PSRP Vice President Dr. Bernabe Marinduque, citing a study that found 700 contraception videos on a single platform had drawn 1.18 billion views.
“The fears that drive women away from hormonal contraception — that it causes weight gain, depression, infertility, sexual dysfunction or cancer — are now amplified at an extraordinary scale online,” he said.
Forum President Dr. Corazon M. Raymundo said shifting political priorities and opposition from conservative groups continue to stall the Reproductive Health Law.
“Almost 14 years after the passage of the Reproductive Health Law, full implementation remains an uphill battle,” she said.
Jhpiego Philippines country program manager Dr. Ingrid Magnata said wider choice depends on more than stocking additional methods.
“It requires strong health systems, equipped providers, reliable information, and services that enable people to make voluntary and informed decisions,” she said.
Men’s involvement lags far behind. Vasectomy prevalence sits at just 0.08%, a figure the CPD cited in urging couples to share responsibility for planning their families.
