CEDAW/C/PHI/5-6 On reproductive and sexual health services for all women in all regions “ The Committee regretted the decentralization of population and development services from the national to the local level, which had apparently resulted in the prohibition of contraceptives in one of the provinces, in contravention of the Convention (Articles 12 and 16(e))” (paragraph 21) The Committee recommended that reproductive and sexual health services, including family planning and contraception, be made available and accessible to all women in all regions.” (Paragraph 28) 33. In the context of decentralization, the national government carries out programs to build the capacity of local government units to deliver health services, including the full Reproductive Health Package (see Article 12 for details). With the help of overseas development assistance, the health department launched in January 2000 a five-year project that aims to capacitate local governments in undertaking comprehensive population, family planning, safe motherhood and child survival programs, as well as in developing family health packages for the local communities. Beginning in 2002, however, the President and the health department prioritized natural family planning. Nonetheless, local government units could implement their own family planning policies and programs. 34. A reproductive health indicator system has been designed in order to help local governments monitor the needs and conditions of their constituency. The Population Commission trains and supports the local governments install the system. 35. Proposed amendments to the Local Government Code include the creation of a permanent population officer post in every local government unit. They are still pending in the Legislature. 36. Bills on reproductive health care are also pending in the Legislature. The bills seek to improve the well-being of Filipinos by establishing an Integrated National Policy and Program on Reproductive Health that recognizes women’s reproductive rights and gender equality and ensures universal access to reproductive health services, information and education. The bills also seek to extend the coverage of the National Health Insurance Program to a wider population, especially the poor, and to cover the full range of sexual and reproductive health services and products. 37. Interventions under FPW. The health and nutrition strategies are: (i) improving women’s access to basic social services, including comprehensive women’s health and nutrition; (ii) upgrading the quality of gender-responsive comprehensive health services for women across the life cycle, and (iii) raising the awareness of health and caring behavior among women. 38. The interventions focus on the key issues of population management and comprehensive women’s health and nutrition and include: (i) advocacy campaigns and information drives, (ii) advocacy for local government policies and budget, and (iii) development of information, education and communication materials on population, comprehensive women’s health and nutrition. They also include (iv) training of health givers to integrate quality of care standards and the core issues in their services, and (v) provision of basic health services, including 23