An estimated two million Filipino women, ages 15 to 49 years old, are expected to get pregnant this year as a result of the COVID-19 lockdowns, according to the estimations Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM).
POPCOM cited a study of the University of the Philippines Population Institute and the United Nations Population Fund, which also claimed that 10 percent of these pregnancies will be among women ages 20 years old and below.
Further, the study stated that about 214,000 of the pregnancies are unplanned which will push the number of births in the country to almost 1.9 million in 2021.
“Looking at these numbers, we foresee that because of the restrictions of movement as well as the reduction of access of women and men to family planning supplies, there will be at least one pregnancy for every three women with an unmet need for family planning,” said POPCOM executive director Juan Antonio Perez III.
The lockdowns will also lead to 178,000 pregnancies among teenagers.
