MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines now ranks 13th among countries with the biggest population in the world, the Commission on Population (Popcom) reported yesterday.

Popcom executive director Juan Antonio Perez  said Ethiopia overtook the Philippines’ from the previous 12th spot for the past three years.

Last July 1, Perez said the Philippines currently has an estimated 104.3 million population.

In 2014, the United Nations (UN) ranked the Philippines as the 12th most populated country with a population of 100 million.

Perez said the country’s ranking may further drop in the coming years since Egypt, now on 14th spot, has higher 1.9 compared to the country’s 1.5 population growth rate.

“This brings up the possibility that they will eventually overtake us in terms of population in the coming years,” Perez said in a statement.

Despite the declining rank in population, Perez said, the government is ready to provide better reproductive health services to further lower the country’s ranking.

“This event is a challenge to provide quality life for the babies and make every Filipino count in the progress and development of the country as the population increases rapidly every year,” he said.

“Popcom’s advocacy that every child should be born wanted, and his or her basic rights on social services, such as health and education, are ensured for total development,” he said.

Yesterday, the Philippines’ symbolic 100 millionth babies turned three years old.

Perez said Popcom is providing families of those babies with P5,000 worth of gift packs for their developmental needs.

Source: http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/07/28/1722195/philippines-13th-most-populated-country