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PopCom brings family planning to poor farming areas

By Lizbeth Ann Abella

April 12, 2019, 6:05 pm

<p><strong>SAAD PROGRAM.</strong> Recipients of Special Areas for Agricultural Development (SAAD) in Eastern Samar claiming farm inputs from the government. The Commission on Population and Development partners with the Department of Agriculture (DA) in bringing Responsible Parenthood and Family Planning to communities in the region which are under DA’s SAAD Program. <em>(Photo courtesy of the Department of Agriculture)</em></p>

SAAD PROGRAM. Recipients of Special Areas for Agricultural Development (SAAD) in Eastern Samar claiming farm inputs from the government. The Commission on Population and Development partners with the Department of Agriculture (DA) in bringing Responsible Parenthood and Family Planning to communities in the region which are under DA’s SAAD Program. (Photo courtesy of the Department of Agriculture)

TACLOBAN CITY -- The Commission on Population and Development (PopCom) has partnered with the Department of Agriculture (DA) in bringing Responsible Parenthood and Family Planning (RPFP) to communities in the region.

The RPFP, which is under the DA’s Special Areas for Agricultural Development (SAAD) Program, is a comprehensive strategy that provides livelihood opportunities for farmers and fisherfolks in the top 10 poorest provinces in the country, which include the Samar island areas and Southern Leyte provinces in Eastern Visayas.

“While the Family Planning program will continue to prioritize the poorest Filipinos who are in greatest need of family planning, PopCom is now opening new service points for workers, farmers, fishermen, and marginalized populations who have not been covered by public health service providers,” PopCom regional director Elnora Pulma, said in an interview Friday.

“Saad” is the Visayan word for “promise”. The program is anchored on two major components: social preparation, and food production and livelihood.

To strengthen the National Program on Family Planning (NPFP), one of the key strategies is to mobilize and engage local government units, private sector, and other partner-organizations and government agencies for demand generation and service provision.

The partnership with the DA comes under this strategy where farmers and fishermen beneficiaries of the program will become the target for RPFP classes by PopCom.

Identified areas for this joint undertaking are Lawaan, Balangiga, Hernani, Quinapondan in Eastern Samar and Sogod, Bontoc, Malitbog and St. Bernard in Southern Leyte.

Pulma said participants who will be identified from these areas will be provided with RPFP information, which will make them become aware of responsible parenthood, as well as on family planning programs and services under the principle of informed choice and volunteerism and this will be conducted during the RPFP class.

The RPFP Program aims to help couples and parents exercise responsible parenting to achieve their desired number, timing and spacing of their children, and to contribute to the improvement of maternal, neonatal and child health, and nutrition.

Andrew Rodolfo Orais, DA 8 (Eastern Visayas) assistant regional director for operations and extension, said the partnership is “very timely” as they are looking to fill in the gap on the social preparation component of the SAAD program.

For the initial allocation per province, the food production and livelihood component of SAAD provides interventions, such as production support services; extension or training support and technology demonstration; and provision of other agricultural equipment or facilities.

“The production and livelihood component is very well served while it is in the social preparation that we need partnerships, such as this, so as to provide a holistic approach to this program,” Orais said.

Meanwhile, as an initial step, the National Economic and Development Authority, Department of Health, and PopCom signed Joint Memorandum Circular 2019-1 last February 15 to address the needs of the country’s growing population and its impact on social and economic development through a co-managed (by DOH and PopCom) and harmonized NPFP.

The population growth rate has seen a decline in past years but the number of Filipinos is still increasing given its large population base and a fertility rate that has remained the highest in the ASEAN region, the 2018 State of the World Population Report revealed. (PNA)

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