OBJECTIVE: This paper aims to quantify the magnitude of drowning injury related deaths among children in the Philippines, to form the evidence base for national policies for drowning prevention.

METHOD: Retrospective review and analysis of published data on child drowning injury (1963-2003) in the Philippines.

RESULTS: At least 3,000 Filipinos of all ages die annually from drowning injury (0.43% of deaths), more than a third of which (35.6%) are children under 14 years. Mortality is highest among children ages 1-4 years compared to other age groups [Mortality Rate (MR) 6.4 vs. 3.8 per 100,000]. Child drowning mortality rates have remained largely unchanged from 1963 to 2003, belying its under recognition as a public health priority. There is also a paucity of local data to adequately describe the epidemiology of child drowning in the Philippines.

CONCLUSION: In the Philippines, drowning deaths disproportionately account for 5% of deaths for 1-4 year olds. Drowning prevention could be a 'low-hanging fruit' in the quest to meet the Millenium Development Goals (MDG's) set for 2015. There is a need for better surveillance of child drowning deaths to guide policy formulation for its prevention and treatment in the Philippines.