Young futures, informed choices: Advancing reproductive agency in PH

2025 World Population Day highlights youth-centered reproductive rights

- BY UNITED NATIONS POPULATION FUND IN THE PHILIPPINES

Key government officials, civil society organizations, youth advocates, and development partners came together to mark World Population Day 2025 on July 11, and launch the 2025 State of World Population (SWOP) Report — “The Real Fertility Crisis: The Pursuit of Reproductive Agencyin a Changing World” — highlighting the urgent need to strengthen systems that support reproductive agency and empower informed choices, particularly among young people.

The event, held at SMX Aura in Taguig City and co-hosted by the Commission on Population and Development (CPD), the Philippine Legislators’ Committee on Population and Development (PLCPD), and UNFPA Philippines, with support from the Australian Government and SM Cares, reflected this year’s global theme, “Empowering young people to create the families they want in a fair and hopeful world.” It spotlighted new evidence and called for age-responsive and gender-sensitive interventions to address early pregnancy, barriers to informed choice, and shifting fertility patterns shaped by socioeconomic realities.

Dr. Leila Joudane, UNFPA Country Representative, asserted that “the true fertility crisis isn’t about numbers, but the lack of reproductive agency. Young people frequently struggle to build the families they desire, yet are often unfairly blamed for low fertility rates and are expected to solve them.” She also noted that “we need to focus on the barriers to their choice.”

The UN Resident Coordinator in the Philippines Arnaud Peral, echoed the same sentiment and highlighted that “early pregnancy, child marriage, and limited access to reproductive health services still hold many young people back.”