The Dumaguete City Population Office will join the search for the 100 Millionth Baby as the Philippine population is expected to hit 100 million on July 27, 2014 at 8:06 a.m., based on the 2010 population projections by the Philippine Statistics Authority.
This event signifies a happy as well as a challenging demographic moment in the lives of every Filipino, according to the City Information Office news release.
The 100 millionth baby will usher a symbolic hope for better quality of life as he/she epitomizes the challenge to make every Filipino count in prosperity and development, he added.
City Population Officer Laume Quijote was quoted as saying that Mayor Manuel Sagarbarria received a letter the other day from POPCOM 7 Regional Director Atty. Bruce Ragas on the 100 Millionth Baby search.
The information campaign will be undertaken by the City POPCOM Office and the City Information Office to include radio guesting and sending letters to three lying-in clinics and two private hospitals accredited by PhilHealth.
The City Health Office will also be a part of the activity, said Repe.
The search for the 100 millionth baby specifies the reporting of the birth of the baby to the POPCOM until August 4, this year.
“The purpose of the ‘Search for the 100 Millionth Baby’ is to call attention to the Philippine population growth and the tiny baby is just one, small part of our development goal. He/she is a symbol of hope and a challenge to all institutions and every Filipino to count on each other to live in a healthy, productive, and livable environment,” said POPCOM Regional Director Atty. Ragas in his letter to the mayor.
The search is open to all babies born on 8:06 a.m. or seconds/minutes later on July 27, 2014 in a government-licensed health facility run by the national or local government.
The facility must be certified as observing the Philippine Standard Time and the birth must be certified by the attending birth attendant/doctor. Only babies who are born through normal spontaneous delivery are qualified to vie for the recognition. Babies delivered through induced or caesarian section shall not be considered.
There will be six winners — one per provinces of Cebu, Bohol, Siquijor, and Negros Oriental, one from Dumaguete City, and another one from Mandaue City. Parents of all winners will receive a starter kit for newborns worth P5,000. (PNA/PR)
