Deaths recorded in 2021 were the highest in a year since World War II, the executive director of Commission on Population and Development said on Friday.

In a radio interview, Undersecretary Juan Antonio Perez III said the mortality rate recorded in the country significantly increased in 2021 due to COVID-19.

"The number of people who died in 2020 is almost the same in 2019. The number of fatality in 2020 is much lower because the effect of COVID-19 in mortality is not yet big," he said.

"However, in 2021 deaths as of November was 768,000. This is the highest number of Filipino died in a year since the World War II," he added.

Perez expressed belief that half of the additional deaths in 2021 was due to COVID-19 infection.

"Most of which that we called as unexpected mortality is because of COVID. We think around half of the additional mortality are COVID from 613,000 to 760,000, so there is an additional 150,000 people (who) died last year. We think most of them are due to COVID because 75,000 have died due COVID as of 2021," he said.

"It is additional to those who died due to heart attack, high blood pressure, and diabetes so it seems that the other illness comes together with COVID," he added. Robina Asido/DMS