PH tops ASEAN in estimated adolescent HIV incidence
UNICEF data indicates that the Philippines now has the highest estimated incidence of new HIV infections among adolescents in Southeast Asia. Experts highlight a concerning upward trend over the last 25 years, contrasting with the progress made by neighboring countries.
Why it matters
This data highlights a significant public health crisis that requires urgent policy intervention and targeted health education for the youth population.
| Composite image from INQUIRER File photo
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines has shifted from having one of Southeast Asia’s lowest estimated rates of new HIV infections among adolescents in 2000 to the region’s highest in 2025, according to recently released data from UNICEF.
Among Filipinos aged 15 to 19, the estimated incidence of new HIV infections rose to 0.49 per 1,000 uninfected adolescents in 2025, a sharp increase from less than 0.01 per 1,000 in 2000, UNICEF’s Key HIV Epidemiology Indicators for Children and Adolescents Aged 0-19, 2000-2025 showed.
The figures were analyzed by University of the Philippines Diliman associate professor and Inquirer data scientist Dr. Rogelio Alicor Panao, who noted that the Philippines’ trajectory was markedly different from those of several Southeast Asian countries that started with higher estimated adolescent HIV incidence.
READ: 12-year-old among confirmed HIV cases in Cebu Province
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