Sylvia E. Claudio is a Filipino academic and physician. She is a prominent advocate for women’s and sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR).
Personal Information
Name –> Sylvia Estrada Claudio
Birth Date –> 1957 (Age )
Hometown –> Philippines
Family and Childhood
Son –> Leloy Claudio (Professor, Political Analyst and Author)
Education
College – University of the Philippines (UP)
Degree – Bachelor of Science in Psychology, cum laude
Degree – Doctor of Medicine (M.D.)
Degree – Ph.D. in Psychology (1996)
* Research Fellow, Institute of Developmental Research Amsterdam at the University of Amsterdam in 1991
Career
Sylvia Claudio served the poor communities in the Philippines during the mid-1980s and early 1990s as a medical professional before shifting fully into academia and advocacy. She has held several key positions at the University of the Philippines, including Professor Emeritus at the UP Diliman College of Social Work and Community Development (CSWCD). She was the Director of the UP Center for Women’s Studies from 2011 to 2014 and later served as the Dean of the CSWCD from 2017 to 2020. She is a co-founder and currently the Chair of the Board of Directors of Likhaan Women’s Center Inc. (Likhaan), an NGO providing reproductive health services to urban poor women. A long-time activist, she was an active member of an outlawed Maoist youth group when Martial Law was declared in 1972, and later became a member of the National Executive Committee of Akbayan, a citizen’s party list. Her written works often address issues of gender, sexuality, and reproductive rights, including her book, Rape, Love and Sexuality: The Construction of Woman in Discourse (2002). She has received awards for her work, including the Courage Award from the Women Have Wings Foundation (2013).
On December 12, 2025, Dr. Sylvia Claudio was part of the Civic organizations and church groups that have filed plunder and multiple criminal and administrative complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte and former officials of the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Office of the Vice President (OVP).