PRESS RELEASE: Breaking Barriers, Breaking the Gaps, Building Inclusive Futures for Contraception for All

The Forum for Family Planning joins the global observance of World Contraception Day 2025 

Manila, Philippines — September 26, 2025. Every year on September 26, the world comes together to commemorate World Contraception Day (WCD), a global campaign that seeks to raise awareness about contraception and empower individuals to make informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health, while building their futures. For the past years, The Forum for Family Planning and Development, in partnership with the Commission on Population and Development, BAYER Philippines, and UNFPA, has joined efforts to break barriers and close gaps in access to contraception and family planning in the country, calling for contraception for all as a pathway to building inclusive futures for the Philippines.

A deepening crisis…

The Philippines faces a deepening crisis in sexual and reproductive health, particularly among youth and adolescents. Between 2016 and 2020, an average of 5–7 girls aged 10–14 gave birth every day, with the youngest recorded mother in 2023 that is only 8 years old. Today, one in ten babies are born to an adolescent mother, and nearly 35% of HIV cases in the country occur among youth aged 15–24, yet only 15% know where to get tested, and fewer than one in five youth have comprehensive HIV knowledge.

Despite the passage of the RPRH Law of 2012, many Filipinos, especially youth, remain excluded from family planning and contraception, and denied their SRHR. Misinformation, stigma, and weak policy implementation continue to deny people their right to access SRHR services.While the law affirms SRHR as a universal right, other marginalized groups such as LGBTQIA+, persons with disabilities, and Indigenous peoples are still left behind. Rural isolation, healthcare inequities, and persistent gender inequality deepen these gaps, making the Philippines one of the countries with the highest rates of adolescent pregnancy, HIV infection, and gender-based violence in Southeast Asia.

… Barriers compounding the crisis

The ongoing SRHR crisis in the country hits the young population the most. As they face multiple intersecting barriers to access their SRHR needs. Fear of side effects, stigma, and religious, cultural, and familial pressures discourage them from using contraception or seeking care. The lack of comprehensive sexual and reproductive education further compounds the problem, leaving them with limited and inaccurate information that places them at risk.

The advancement of technology and online platforms, instead of bridging these gaps, often heightens risks for young people by spreading misinformation rather than providing reliable guidance and information for them to have informed choices and self-care. At the systemic level, restrictive laws and the absence of youth-friendly, gender-affirming, and responsive services continue to leave behind the most vulnerable, particularly LGBTQIA+ communities, adolescents in rural areas, and those from marginalized families.

“These barriers do not exist independently; they intersect and reinforce one another, trapping young people in cycles of misinformation, risk, and exclusion. This, in turn, deepens the country’s SRHR crisis, marked by rising adolescent pregnancies, increasing HIV cases, and persistent gender-based discrimination and violence,” says Dr. Corazon Raymundo, President of The FORUM for Family Planning and Development.

Breaking the barriers, breaking the gaps…

As we celebrate World Contraception Day 2025, The Forum for Family Planning and Development Inc., emphasizes that addressing the deepening SRHR crisis requires urgent solution and systemic change.

To end the SRHR crisis affecting countless Filipinos, especially the youth, we emphasize the need to confront not only the health aspects but also the structural barriers that fuel inequality and restrict access to family planning and contraception. This requires focusing also on:

1. Implement comprehensive SRHR education that is inclusive, age-appropriate, and culturally relevant, addressing the diverse needs of all youth, including LGBTQIA+, adolescents with disabilities, Indigenous peoples, out-of-school youth, and other marginalized groups.

2. Promote equitable access to SRHR, family planning, and contraception with confidential, gender-affirming, adolescent-friendly services, and strengthen social protection for young mothers, LGBTQIA+ youth, and persons living with HIV.

3. Challenge harmful norms and discrimination through advocacy, policy, awareness campaigns, community engagement, and intergenerational dialogue to promote gender equality.

4. Enhance inclusive, disaggregated data collection across marginalized groups, improve multi-sectoral coordination, and use technology responsibly to provide accurate SRHR information and protect youth online.

5. Advocate for enabling laws like the Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Bill and SOGIESC Equality Bill, and institutionalize youth and community participation to ensure inclusive, evidence-based, and responsive policies.

Building inclusive futures

This World Contraception Day 2025, The FORUM calls on policymakers, educators, health providers, civil society, and communities to take decisive action: invest in youth and community leadership, protect rights across all sectors to achieve SRHR for all and build inclusive futures.

“Making sure that everyone is included means meeting people’s SRHR needs—it demands justice, equity, inclusivity, and a focus on overall well-being. Building an inclusive future requires acknowledging the meaningful participation, representation, and empowerment of people and communities,” Dr. Raymundo added.

Development must be people-centered, and advancing youth rights, LGBTQIA+ rights, and the health of marginalized groups depends on their meaningful participation, representation, and empowerment. Breaking systemic barriers to SRHR is not just a public health issue and intervention: it demands justice, equity, and inclusivity.

Together, let’s build a future where youth, LGBTQIA+ people, women, men, persons with disabilities, Indigenous peoples, and other marginalized groups are leaders and partners in shaping SRHR. Let’s empower everyone to make informed choices, free from stigma and discrimination, and create an inclusive, just, and sustainable society.