Salvador Benedicto Mayor Marxlen Dela Cruz has expressed concern over the high teenage pregnancy rate in his town.
Dela Cruz said 52 percent of all pregnant mothers in the town are young mothers or those aged 19 years old and below.
"We will look into the reasons for the rise of teenage pregnancies in his town," the mayor said.
He added that he was saddened by the report.
"It seems that the youth have no hope in their lives. When they graduate from high school or when they already have their monthly menstrual cycle, they see themselves as mothers already," Dela Cruz said.
He also said that they discovered that the majority of those who impregnate these teenagers are men in their middle ages or those aged about 40 years old.
"We will help these teenagers through training so that even if they are pregnant already, they can be productive and have dignity in their lives," Dela Cruz said.
He added, “We will coordinate with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) through its
Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (KALAHI-CIDSS).”
KALAHI-CIDSSS is a poverty alleviation program of the National Government implemented by the DSWD.
Another factor, he said, contributes to the high incidence of teenage pregnancy is that DSB also has a high out-of-school rate.
Data from the Provincial Health Office showed that of the 35,628 pregnant mothers of all ages last year, a total of 5,721 cases were teenage pregnancies.*