Men urged to step up as women still carry family planning burden

While more men undergo vasectomy, women have taken contraceptives.

Health advocates encourage men to “share the load” with women in family planning, as more Filipinos seek contraception to either curb family size or do away with parenting entirely.

After raising three children, business owner Richard and his wife Liza decided enough was enough.

Liza had used an intrauterine device once their youngest reached elementary school. After 10 years, she switched to birth control pills but as time passed, the toll of these contraceptives grew harder to ignore, as violent mood swings and hormonal changes became common.

Richard then decided to undergo vasectomy for his wife.

“Feeling ko nagsu-suffer na din siya,” Richard told radar Lifestyle. Accompanied by his wife and son, he availed of a free no-scalpel vasectomy procedure in Quezon City provided by DKT Philippines.

DKT Philippines program manager Annex Macadaan told radar Lifestyle that it’s important right now for men to be the ones taking responsibility for family planning: “So that naco-continue din ‘yomg harmonious relationships on both sides.”

One of DKT Philippines’ flagship programs is Men Involvement in Reproductive Health, which includes free condom distribution and free vasectomy procedures at the barangay or community level.

The Commission on Population and Development has noted that Filipino women often disproportionately bear the burden of family planning.

The Philippines’ fertility rate—or the average number of children born to a woman—has now dropped to 1.7. To sustain population growth, a replacement level of 2.1 is needed.

The CPD said the number largely reflects women’s reproductive choices. Vasectomy rates, though increasing, remain low—with only 0.1% of the population having undergone the procedure.

“‘Yong uri ng mga family planning na meron tayo at madaling ma-access ay karamihan mas sa kababaihan. Mas kakaunti ang available methods para sa mga lalaki,” said a representative for the University of the Philippines Center for Women’s and Gender Studies.

Most widely used contraceptives—pills, intrauterine devices, implants, and tubal ligation—are designed for women. Male options remain limited to condoms, vasectomy, and spermicide gels.

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