Based on the results of the 2013 Young Adult Fertility and Sexuality Study (YAFS) conducted by the University of the Philippines Population Institute (UPPI) and Demographic Research Development Foundation, one in every 10 Filipina teen aged 15 – 19 years old is already a mother! Further, 2.6% of Filipina teens in the same age group are already pregnant with her first child, while 13.6% have begun childbearing.
 

Aside from teenage fertility, it is also worth noting the sexual behavior of today’s youth aged 15 – 24 years old. Among the males, three out of four have ever watched pornographic movies/videos, while only two out of five females have done the same. In terms of engaging in premarital sex (PMS), more males have engaged in PMS at 35.5% compared to females at 28.7%.
 

As today is the age of social media, majority of the female Filipino youth (56.0%) have a social networking account; while only half of the males have an account. However, very few have a personal blog at two percent each for both females and males.
 

Other indicators relating to health, lifestyle and media exposure of the youth, which are highlighted in YAFS, are also presented in this year’s Factsheet on Women and Men (WAM).  
 

The Factsheet on WAM focuses on the latest statistical updates on women and men in the Philippines. This year’s edition contains 80 indicators covering 15 socio-economic sectors and gender concerns, namely: 1) Population; 2) Education; 3) Health and Nutrition; 4) Work and Economic Participation; 5) Family Income and Expenditures; 6) Agriculture; 7) Public Life; 8) Trade and Industry; 9) Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), specifically on Goal 3; 10) Tourism; 11) Social Welfare and Development; 12) Violence Against Women; 13) Child Abuse; 14) Gender Development; and 15) Filipino Youth. A comparison among ASEAN countries in some indicators disaggregated by sex is also available.
 

The Factsheet includes data from the latest statistical reports and publications, such as the 2012 Family Income and Expenditure Survey (FIES), October 2013 Labor Force Survey (LFS), 2012 Survey on Overseas Filipinos (SOF), among others. It hopes to provide relevant and user-friendly information on gender issues that are deemed important to planners, researchers and other users for gender and development advocacy, planning, programming and policy setting.
 

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA)’s release of the 2014 Factsheet on WAM is in support of this year’s celebration of Women’s Month.

 

 

Interim National Statistician