POPCOM-7 Marks Women’s Month with ‘Oh My GAD!’

The Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM) Regional Office celebrated International Women’s Month on March 10, 2020 with “OH MY GAD!”, an Orientation Seminar on Gender and Development (GAD) attended by 30 Barangay Health Workers (BHWs) representing 20 barangays in Cebu City together with Population Officer Designate Jane Sia.

The BHWs were newly-installed during the last quarter of 2019 and were new to GAD concepts.

POPCOM’s modules 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.

POPCOM takes the lead as secretariat to the Regional Implementation Team (RIT) of Republic Act No. 10354, otherwise known as “Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012” or the RH Law as stipulated in the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR).

As such, there are 5 key result areas (KRAs) that POPCOM gathers, collates and analyzes for better implementation of the RPRH Law as it guarantees discussions on responsible parenthood and universal access to methods of family planning, maternal and neonatal care.

These five KRAs include: KRA 1- Maternal and Neonatal Health; KRA 2- Family Planning; KRA 3- Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health; KRA 4- STI, HIV and AIDS; and KRA 5- Gender-based Violence.

In 2019, the key result area KRA No. 5 on Gender-based Violence reported a total of 629 local policies addressing VAW and GBV in Central Visayas, with 265 or 42 percent from Negros Oriental and 215 or 34 percent from Cebu Province.

There are 92 from Bohol and 53 from Siquijor.

There is limited data from the cities and an important source may be the DILG 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 reached by IEC/awareness campaigns on VAW/GBV was a total of 40,700 in Central Visayas wherein 29,936 or 47 percent come from Cebu Province and 16,826 or 27 percent come from Bohol.

The rest are 7,761 from Negros Oriental, 3,233 from Siquijor, and 1,581 from Lapulapu City.

There’s a gray area in gathering data from the major cities – Cebu City and Mandaue City – which need validation considering that during the celebration of Women’s Month in March, it is possible that IECs were propagated and have reached men as there are members of ERPATS in the barangays.

In terms of service delivery specifically on psycho-social counselling and values inculcation to victims/survivors, there were 1,154 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 are 4 in Siquijor.

There are challenges in gathering data in the three cities of Cebu, Lapulapu, and Mandaue which need validation.

On the number of functional Local Council Against Trafficking-Violence Against Women and Children (LCAT-VAWC) there are 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 are 27 from Mandaue City and 12 from Siquijor.

The two cities of Cebu and Lapulapu need validation considering for example, that the barangays and the police precincts are actively into gender intervention and VAW prevention.

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.

Region 7 or Central Visayas has a total of 3,003 barangays, 116 municipalities, and 10 cities in a population of over seven million.