The Philippines Population 2000 census - 76,504, estimate - 85,236,913 The Philippines is the world's 13th most populous country, with a population of over 85 million as of 2005 Population growth per year is about 1.92% 26.3 births per 1,000 people Average household size in 2000 was 5

The Philippine population in the early 1990s continued to grow at a rapid, although somewhat reduced rate from that which had prevailed in the preceding decades. In 1990 the Philippine population was more than 66 million, up from 48 million in This figure represents an annual growth rate of 2.5 percent, down from 2.6 percent in 1980 and from more than 3 percent in the 1960s. Even at the lower growth rate, the Philippine population will increase to an estimated 77 million by the year 2000 and will double every twenty-nine years into the next century. Moreover, in 1990 the population was still a youthful one, with 57 percent under the age of twenty. The birth rate in early 1991 was 29 per 1,000, and the death rate was 7 per 1,000. The infant mortality rate was 48 deaths per 1,000 live births. Population density increased from 160 per square kilometer in 1980 to 220 in The rapid population growth and the size of the younger population has required the Philippines to double the amount of housing, schools, and health facilities every twenty-nine years just to maintain a constant level.

How the population has changed since 1961 to 2003

Population Control Popcom was the government agency with primary responsibility for controlling population growth. In 1985 Popcom set a target for reducing the growth rate to 1 percent by To reach that goal in the 1990s, Popcom recommended that families have a maximum of two children, that they space the birth of children at three-year intervals, and that women delay marriage to age twenty-three and men to age twenty-five. During the Marcos regime ( ), there was a rather uneasy accommodation between the Catholic hierarchy and the government population control program. Bishops served on Popcom, and the rhythm method was included by clinics as a birth-control method about which they could give information. A few Catholic priests, notably Frank Lynch, even called for energetic support of population limitation. The fall of Marcos coincided with a general rise of skepticism about the relation between population growth and economic development. It became common to state that exploitation, rather than population pressure, was the cause of poverty. The bishops withdrew from the Popcom board, opposed an effort to reduce the number of children counted as dependents for tax purposes, secured the removal of the population-planning clause from the draft of the Constitution, and attempted to end government population programs. Attacks on the government population program were defeated, and efforts to popularise family planning, along with the provision of contraceptive materials, continued. In the early 1990s, however, the program generally lacked the firm government support needed to make it effective.

Not sustainable Reducing the number of people living in poverty to 22.7 per cent of the population was a commitment that the Philippines made under the Millennium Development Goals, pledging to stamp out extreme poverty by However, Ernesto Pernia, a Professor of economics at the University of the Philippines, said a 1.95 per cent annual population growth rate was unsustainable. He pointed out that it was higher than other developing countries in Asia. Pernia said the Philippines should be able to slow down its population growth rate to as low as 1.6 per cent, similar to that of Bangladesh, to be able to meet its poverty- reduction goals. He described the governments effort to arrest the growing population as practically nil, and said there had not been enough programmes to promote birth control.

With the Philippines dominated by Catholic voters, the government has yet to make a tough stand against population growth and has left it up to couples to choose their preferred method of family planning. At present, contraceptives in the country are basically sourced from foreign donation, particularly from the United Nations Population Fund. Donations are expected to stop by In a separate report from Xinhua News Agency, President Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo,is quoted as saying that her government would focus more on feeding the hungry rather than on programmes aimed at limiting population growth. The President said she would rather have the current 1.95 per cent population growth rate maintained instead of spending the funds for artificial birth control methods. The government prefers to promote natural family planning methods. The President said the funds would be better allocated to address hunger, poverty and unemployment. However Mrs Arroya added that she was pleased that the country's population growth rate slowed to 1.95 per cent from 2.36 per cent from 1995 to It plans to improve food for school programmes, so they reach 1.3 million families rather than the 400,000 at present. Catholic Influence