popdev

• POPCOM was created in 1969 by virtue of Executive Order (EO) 171 which established a 22-member Commission on Population.
• Republic Act 6365, or the Population Act of the Philippines, was enacted into law by the Philippine Congress on August 16, 1971, which established the National Population Policy.
• The agency was mandated in 1972 by Presidential Decree 79, or the Revised Population Act of the Philippines, to be the central policymaking, planning, coordinating, and monitoring agency for the Philippine Population Management Program (PPMP).
• Before the actual creation of POPCOM, then-president of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos, together with 17 other heads of state, signed in December 1967 the United Nations Declaration on Population, which stated: “The population problem must be recognized as a principal element in long-range planning if governments are to achieve their economic goals and fulfill the aspirations of their people."
• In 1970 the Ad Hoc Commission on Population, created the year prior, recommended the launch of the National Population Program through EO 233.
• Toward the next decade, POPCOM was listed as an attached agency to the Department of Social Welfare and Development by virtue of EO 123 in 1986.
• In 1990, EO 408, as directed by then-chief executive Corazon Aquino, placed POPCOM under the Office of the President in order to “facilitate coordination of policies and programs relative to population.” The following year, EO 476 made POPCOM an attached agency of the NEDA.
• The regime of then Philippine president Joseph Estrada reformulated the PPMP, with responsible parenthood as its cornerstone.
• In 2003, then-president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo issued EO 188, which transferred POPCOM under the Department of Health (DOH).
• Under her administration, Arroyo joined the community of nations in expressing support for the International Conference on Population and Development, or ICPD.
• The statement reiterated the four principles that guide the Philippine government in the implementation of its population program: responsible parenthood, respect for life, birth spacing and informed choices.
• Health services, including those for reproductive health, were devolved by the Local Government Code to the local government units (LGUs).
• 1.      Responsible Parenthood and Family Planning (RPFP) - POPCOM's RPFP strategies are geared toward assisting couples to achieve their desired number and spacing of children within the demand of responsible parenthood through effective family planning. They aim to attain zero unmet need for modern family planning through increased access to family planning information and services.

  Aside from exercising responsible parenting, POPCOM would like to help couples and parents contribute in maternal, neonatal and child health, and nutrition (MNCHN).
• •       Article XV, Section 3.1 - “The State shall defend the right of the spouses to found a family in accordance with their religious convictions and the demands of responsible parenthood.”
• •       Article II, Section 12 - “The State recognizes the sanctity of family life and shall protect and strengthen the family as a basic autonomous social institution.  It shall protect the life of the mother and the life of the unborn from conception.  The natural and primary duty of parents in the rearing of the youth for civic efficiency and development of moral character shall receive the support of the Government.”
• 1.      Adolescent Health and Development (AHD) - As the government agency tasked to manage the Philippines's AHD program, POPCOM's overall goal is to contribute to the prevention of early and repeated pregnancies among Filipino youth.

  POPCOM works closely with other stakeholders in linking demand generation and service delivery for Filipino adolescents. With concerted efforts, necessary services and information crucial to the development of the total well-being of young people will be made available wherever they are: at homes, schools, churches and in their communities.
• 1.      POPDEV Integration - As a population management strategy, POPDEV integration is defined as the explicit consideration and integration of population dynamics and dimensions in the critical steps of any development initiative, such as plan and program development, policy formulation, database management and utilization, and other efforts that aim to improve, in a sustainable manner, the development conditions of the people and the localities where they live.
• The central idea of the Philippine Population and Development Program (PPDP) is responsible parenthood, which aims to improve family well-being and is not solely focused on fertility reduction.
• The PPDP promotes family development and responsible parenting.
• The PPDP views family welfare, including that of the individual, as the central objective of the national development program.
• The PPDP respects the rights of couples to determine the size of their family and choose voluntarily the means to do so in accordance with their moral convictions and religious beliefs, as well as cultural mores and norms.
• The PPDP is non-coercive and does not condone abortion as a means of family planning.
• The PPDP promotes self-reliance and multi-sectoral participation, giving priority to projects that are self-sustaining and involve community participation.
• The PPDP encourages coordinative and participative approaches through the participation of local government units (LGUs), nongovernment organizations (NGOs) and other key stakeholders.
• 1.      Gender and Development Program - The Gender and Development Program of the Commission on Population and Development is anchored both on the international commitments and local laws. The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) is an international treaty adopted in 1979 by the United Nations General Assembly. Described as an international bill of rights for women, it was instituted on 3 September 1981 and has been ratified by 189 states.
• The PPDP adheres to gender equality and equity, which is non-discriminatory in all political, social, and economic development concerns.
• The 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) articulated a bold new vision about the relationships between population, development and individual well-being. At the ICPD in Cairo, 179 countries adopted a forward-looking, 20-year Programme of Action (PoA) that continues to serve as a comprehensive guide to people-centred development progress. The Philippines was among the 179 signatory countries that supported the ICPD PoA.
• For the Philippines, one major accomplishment was the passage of the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health (RPRH) Bill into law in 2012. POPCOM serves as the secretariat and co-chair of the National/Regional Implementation Team (N/RIT).
• The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action that was approved in September 1995 at the Fourth World Conference on Women, is a global pledge to attaining equality, development and peace for women worldwide. It requires all governments to develop policies and national plans of action to implement the Platform locally. As part of the accomplishment of the Government of the Philippines was the mandatory provision of at least 5% of the total budget be allotted to the Gender and Development (GAD) initiatives.
• The enactment of the Magna Carta of Women (RA 9710) has been regarded nationally and internationally as a significant milestone in the empowerment of Filipino women.
• The law provides and entrenched women’s rights particularly among those who are marginalized, underserved, and discriminated against.
• The Magna Carta of Women is being implemented through the leadership of the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) with the institutional support and collaboration with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) particularly for the localization and monitoring of the provisions of the Magna Carta.
• Capacity building and appropriate institutional mechanisms have been set in place for the mobilization of DILG and LGUs in the implementation of the Magna Carta specifically at the local level.
• The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2000 addresses extreme poverty in its many dimensions-income poverty, hunger, disease, lack of adequate shelter, and exclusion-while promoting gender equality, education, and environmental sustainability.
• 1. Technical Divisions

  1.  Policy Development and Data Management Division (PDDMD)

  2.  Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Division (PMED)

  3.  Knowledge Management and Communications Division (KMCD)

  4.  Capacity Development and Field Operations Division (CDFOD)
• B. Support Services Divisions

  1.  Administrative Division (AD), and

  2.  Financial and Management Division (FMD)
• The Internal Audit Unit - is an independent body that audits the internal operations of the Agency and directly reporting to the Board of Commissioners.
• The POPCOM Central Office is located at Acacia Lane Ext., Welfareville Compound, Brgy. Addition Hills, Mandaluyong City.
• POPCOM Region I (Ilocos Region) – San Fernando, La Union
• POPCOM Region II (Cagayan Valley) – Tuguegarao City, Cagayan