THE Commission on Population and Development (Popcom) 7 celebrated International Women’s Month on March 10, 2020 with “Oh My GAD!” an orientation seminar on gender and development (GAD) with close to 30 barangay health workers (BHWs) representing 20 barangays in Cebu City together with Population Officer Designate Jane Sia.
The BHW participants were newly installed during the last quarter of 2019 and they were new to GAD concepts.
Modules of the Popcom on GAD were discussed by resource speakers Myrna Alaba and Malou Garillos, specifically on sex and gender definition, and gender issues including Violence Against Women and Children (VAWC). The discussions culminated with comparative Wheels on Violence and Equality.
The Popcom took the lead as secretariat to the regional implementation team of Republic Act 10354, otherwise known as “Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012” as stipulated in the Implementing Rules and Regulations.
As such, there were five key result areas (KRAs) that the Popcom gathered, collated and analyzed for better implementation of the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012 as it guaranteed discussions on responsible parenthood and universal access to methods of family planning, maternal and neonatal care.
These five KRAs included KRA 1 (maternal and neonatal health); KRA 2 (family planning); KRA 3 (adolescent sexual and reproductive health); KRA 4 (sexually transmitted infection, human immunodeficiency virus and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome); and KRA 5 (gender-based violence).
In 2019, the key result area KRA 5 on gender-based violence reported a total of 629 local policies addressing violence against women (VAW) and gender-based violence (GBV) in Central Visayas, with 265 or 42 percent from Negros Oriental and 215 or 34 percent from Cebu Province. There were 92 from Bohol and 53 from Siquijor. There was a limited data from the cities and an important source may be the Department of the Interior and Local Government Office. In Cebu City, for example there are already 11 city ordinances related to VAW concerns other than the LGBT matters. Bogo City and Cebu Province also have GAD Codes and Cebu City has codified-ready GAD-related measures in its legislative tracking.
In the same KRA 5, the number of men that was reached by awareness campaigns on VAW/GBV was a total of 40,700 in Central Visayas wherein 29,936 or 47 percent came from Cebu Province and 16,826 or 27 percent came from Bohol. The rest were 7,761 from Negros Oriental, 3,233 from Siquijor, and 1,581 from Lapu-Lapu City.
In terms of service delivery specifically on psycho-social counselling and values inculcation to victims/survivors, there were 1,154 activities in Central Visayas with 600 or 52 percent in Bohol Province, 330 or 29 percent in Negros Oriental and 220 or 19 percent in Cebu Province. There were four in Siquijor.
On the number of functional Local Council Against Trafficking-Violence Against Women and Children (LCAT-VAWC) there were 1,074 reported in Region 7 with 510 or 47 percent coming from Bohol Province, 321 or 30 percent from Negros Oriental and 204 or 19 percent from Cebu Province. There were 27 from Mandaue City and 12 from Siquijor.
All barangays in Central Visayas have functional VAW Desks as this is mandated under the law with the presence of GAD focals who coordinate with members of the Lupon Tagapamayapa for village-based mediation. Central Visayas has a total of 3,003 barangays, 116 municipalities, and 10 cities and a population of over seven million.