Comment on this story
Comment
New projections from the United Nations Department of Social and Economic Affairs show the world’s population is expected to reach 8 billion on November 15 – although population growth is the slowest in decades, with rates falling below 1 percent in 2020.
The agency’s World Population Projections report released on Monday projects that India will overtake China as the world’s most populous country by 2023, a shift partly due to China’s aging population and history of birth control.
According to India’s local population census, the country’s population was 1.21 billion in 2011. The government had postponed the census to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In India, the population control debate is turning explosive
Population trends outlined in the report show that in most parts of the world, death is outpacing life.
The population of 61 countries is projected to decline by 1% or more between 2022 and 2050, with the exception of eight countries: the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Tanzania.
Other recent studies conducted by the United Nations have shown that by the end of the century, Africa will be the only continent to experience population growth, with 13 of the world’s 20 largest urban areas expected to be located there.
How Africa will become the center of the world’s urban future
With the recent decline in birth rates, countries in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean will continue to be dominated by a large proportion of working-age people between 25 and 64.
This change, called the “demographic dividend,” indicates that countries are likely to experience accelerated economic growth per capita, although an increase in the number of aging residents could create problems for places where access to health care is scarce, as the burden will fall on the workers. senior citizens to take on the majority of elderly care.
“Rapid population growth makes eradicating poverty, fighting hunger and malnutrition, and increasing the reach of health and education systems more difficult,” said Liu Zhenmin, UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs. “Conversely, achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, especially those related to health, education and gender equality, will contribute to lower birth rates and slow global population growth.”
The coronavirus is also playing a role in stagnant population growth.
From January 2020 to December 2021, 14.9 million people died from covid-related problems, according to the World Health Organization. Global life expectancy fell to 71 years from 72.8 in 2019. Covid is also likely to lead to a short-term reduction in pregnancies and births. And with more restrictions on cross-border activity, migration levels have also collapsed – a key driver of population growth in developing countries.
Add Comment