TACLOBAN CITY – Minor girls from the region had become more sexually active. This was indicated on the latest report conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). Based on the PSA report, as contained under the 2013 National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS), girls in the region had experienced sexual intercourse even reaching the age of 15. In a forum, Sheryl Ann Jamisola, PSA Statistician, said that Region 8 placed second with the highest incidence of girls 15 years engaging in sexual act at 4.0 percentage. Region VI or Western Visayas had 5.0 percentage. The result of the survey, conducted from August 12 to October 16, 2013, showed that Region 8 rose up from 2.7 percent during the 2008 survey. The national average is 2.2 percent. Moreover, the survey also revealed that early pregnancy and motherhood varies by education, wealth quintile, and region. It is more common among young women with less education than among those with higher education as well as of those who are classified as belonging to poor households than in wealthier households. The 2013 NDHS is a nationally representative survey of almost 16,000 households and 19,000 women age 15-49 designed to provide information on fertility, family planning and health in the country. (MA. JANE CYRES C.CAING, LNU Intern)
