What Does Social Responsibility Look Like in the Reproductive Health Space?

Social responsibility often brings to mind environmental causes, education drives, or community clean-ups. These are classic ways organizations give back to their communities, and they’ve long been seen as markers of doing something good. While these initiatives make a visible impact, one crucial area rarely gets the spotlight — reproductive health.

Despite being an important aspect of a community’s well-being, it often takes the backseat, ending up being a taboo topic for campaigns or confined to specific advocacy groups, largely due to cultural sensitivities.

Social Responsibility and Reproductive Health

When it comes to social responsibility, it’s not just about doing something good, but also addressing what communities actually need — and reproductive health fits right in. In the Philippines, the rising cases of HIV infections and adolescent pregnancy among Filipino youth are just a few pressing concerns that need strong, collaborative action from both the public and private sectors.   

Many aspects of social, economic, and cultural concerns are tied with reproductive health and directly affect community life. When individuals have access to family planning options and quality healthcare, they’re more empowered to pursue education, sustain livelihoods, and contribute meaningfully to society. This ripple effect indicates that supporting reproductive health initiatives not only ensures wellness but also social progress.

This is where social enterprises truly stand out. Unlike most corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs that focus on short-term outreach, social enterprises are built for sustained impact. Long-term commitment enables them to make a more meaningful difference in advancing the reproductive health space and empowering communities.

Why Social Enterprises Matter

Social enterprises are businesses made for the purpose of achieving a core positive social objective. They do so by selling goods and services to generate revenue, then reinvest their earnings into programs that advance their cause. This model separates them from traditional businesses focused solely on profit and charities dependent on external funding.

In the reproductive health space, this model is especially beneficial as it allows social enterprises to deliver scalable solutions to reach more people, from affordable reproductive health products to free consultations and outreach services.

TRUST Leading the Charge in Social Responsibility

For many Filipinos, sexual and reproductive health (SRH) still carries misconceptions that limit open discussion. This calls for campaigns that address the problem head-on, normalizing conversations about sexual wellness and challenging misconceptions. 

One example is TRUST’s ongoing “Ang Normal Mo, Normal ‘Yan!” campaign launched on September 25, 2025. The initiative reminds the public that taking care of one’s sexual and reproductive health is not shameful, but a normal, responsible, and important commitment.

TRUST is the commercial master brand of DKT Health, Inc., a social enterprise that reinvests proceeds from its sales into programs of DKT Philippines Foundation that deliver free reproductive health services nationwide, especially in far-flung areas. Through this initiative, each purchase translates to tangible and measurable support for communities.

The brand measures “Couple-Years of Protection” (CYP) to gauge its overall impact beyond generating revenue. CYPs are an important metric used by donors, demographers, and public health practitioners to evaluate the success of contraceptive social marketing programs. In 2024 alone, TRUST successfully protected a total of 3.6 million couples or 7.2 million individuals in the Philippines through its commercial and free services, highlighting the brand’s reliability, experience, and long-standing dedication for over three decades.

“We as a social enterprise put impact over profit,” shared Denise R. van Dijk, President and CEO of DKT Health, Inc. ”These profits are just a means of increasing our impact. We take what we generate and put it back into our foundation so it can focus on last-mile distributions.

A Collective Mission for Change

In a time when consumers are more conscious of the values behind the brands they support, social enterprises like TRUST show how purpose-driven business can drive meaningful change. By investing in social progress, these entities help build stronger, more empowered communities that value health, choice, and well-being.