The Commission on Population and Development (CPD) has called for stronger investments in human capital to maximize “window of opportunity” as the country experiences a historic decline in birth rates alongside a growing working-age population.

“With the growing working age population aged 15-64 years, composing 63.9 percent of the Philippine population, investments should focus on developing our human capital, especially the education, health, and skills of our people,” the CPD said in a news release Tuesday.

The 2025 National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) in March also showed that the average number of children Filipino women have in their lifetime has dropped to a record-low 1.7.

The CPD noted that this 1.7 Total Fertility Rate (TFR) is a significant decline from 4.1 children per woman recorded in 1993.

CPD Undersecretary Lisa Grace Bersales said these demographic shifts must be matched with deliberate policy action, warning that persistent inequalities could limit these gains.

“Population and reproductive health policies and strategies must be explicitly integrated with socioeconomic development strategies. Education and access to information are still key in ensuring that Filipinos achieve the number of children they desire, when they want it,” she said.

The CPD noted that fertility is significantly higher among poorer households with 2.8 children, on average, vis-a-vis those in the richest quintile, with 1.1.

It added that women with lower education levels exhibit higher fertility.

Bersales said these data indicate the inequalities that persist in Philippine society.

Meanwhile, the CPD reported improvements in family planning, with contraceptive use among married women rising from 42 percent in 2022 to 58.6 percent in 2025, but noted that family planning remains largely women-driven, with male participation at only 1.9 percent.

It said that modern methods of family planning have also risen from 44.5 percent in 2025, up from 41.8 percent in 2022.

Female-centric methods are still most popular, with the use of pills at 11.6 percent, ligation or female sterilization at 4.6 percent, and injectables at 3.4 percent.

“Filipino women who want no more children increased from 48.8 percent to 57 percent. Thus, we call for the positioning of family planning as part of reproductive life planning, not just birth limitation,” Bersales said.

Adolescent pregnancy

The CPD noted a decline in adolescent pregnancy rates among girls aged 15 to 19 to 4.9 percent, from 5.4 percent in 2022.

However, it emphasized that the issue remains concentrated among vulnerable groups, particularly those with limited education and from low-income households.

“The usual indicators still exist – adolescent girls with some primary education (17.2 percent) recorded the highest percentage of pregnancies. In terms of household wealth, adolescent pregnancy was highest among those in the poorest quintile (9.4 percent) and lowest among those in the richest quintile (1.4 percent),” it said.

Regional disparities also persist, with higher adolescent pregnancy rates recorded in Region 9 (Zamboanga Peninsula) at 9.3 percent, while Region 12 (Soccsksargen) and Region 4-B (Mimaropa) have 8.2 percent.

The agency also flagged a rise in pregnancies among younger adolescents aged 10 to 14, with live births increasing by 8 percent in 2024, based on civil registration data.

“As revealed in the 2024 Civil Registration and Vital Statistics, an 8 percent increase is noted at 3,612, from its 2023 levels, at 3,343 live births,” it said.

Aggravating these numbers, the CPD said, is the fact that the fathers of these adolescent girls aged 15-19 are older men, with 31 percent at three to five years older, and 21 percent are six to 10 years older.

“Creating an enabling environment to foster reproductive agency or choice is still what CPD calls for – adolescent pregnancy (for girls aged 10-19) should be reframed as a developmental inequality issue, as the issue is no longer just prevalence. It is concentration among vulnerable groups,” Bersales said.

The CPD called for intensified reproductive health education, expanded access to adolescent-friendly health services, and stronger interventions addressing school dropout, early unions, and poverty. (PNA)