The Commission on Population and Development has urged proponents of community pantries to include contraceptives such as condoms and pills as necessary goods in their distribution activities.
“POPCOM is very much supportive of community pantries as a form of collective action in alleviating the need for sustenance of our less privileged. We believe that they will welcome the addition of condoms and pills among the goods they will source—with the help of their local healthcare personnel,” said Undersecretary for Population and Development Juan Antonio Perez III.
Perez said the dispensation of family planning services and commodities as essential during the ongoing public health emergency can help prevent unplanned and teenage pregnancies.
“The presence of these modern methods of contraception in community pantries should also be seen as filling a void in the rollout of family planning activities, which are greatly disrupted by the pandemic,” he added.
Organizers of community pantries, Perez said, should seek the support of local health personnel such as barangay health workers as well as family planning and barangay population volunteers.
“As the most popular family planning method, pills need a prescription or enrollment in the family planning program. Our BHWs and BPVs can be invited to assist in dispensing such,” the POPCOM chief added.