Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered government agencies to ensure free access to contraceptives for 6 million women who cannot obtain them, officials said Wednesday, in a move expected to be opposed by the dominant Roman Catholic church. Economic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia said the intensified drive to make contraceptives available and ensure "zero unmet need for family planning" is important to reduce poverty. The executive order Duterte signed Monday said out of the 6 million women with unmet needs for modern family planning, 2 million have been identified as poor. The 2 million women should have access to them by 2018, and all the rest thereafter, the order added. It also directs government agencies to locate couples with unmet family planning needs, mobilize agencies up to the village level and partner with civil society in intensifying the drive.

Source: Fox News January 11, 2017 13:30 UTC