READING UN POPULATION REPORT

According to the 2022 edition of the United Nations ’UN World Population Prospects Report (WPP),

• India is projecting to surpass China as the world’s most populous country in 2023.

What is the WPP?

• The Population Division of the UN has been publishing the WPP in a biennial cycle since1951.
• Each revision of the WPP provides a historical time series of population indicators starting in 1950.
• It takes into account newly release national data to revise estimates of past trends in fertility, mortality or international migration.

MAIN TAKEAWAYS FOR THE GLOBAL POPULATION:

• The world’s population continues to grow, but the pace of growth is slowing down in UN POPULATION REPORT:
• The global population is expecting to grow to around 8.5 billion in 2030
• In 2020, the global growth rate fell under 1% per year for the first time since1950
• Rates of population growth vary significantly across countries and regions:
• More than half of the projects increase in global population up to 2050 will be concentrate in just eight countries: the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and the United Republic of Tanzania.
• The 46 least developed countries (LDCs) are among the world’s fastest growing.
• The population of older persons is increasing both in numbers and as a share of the total:

The share of the global population aged 65 years or above is projected to rise from10% in2022 to 16% in 2050.

• The report warns that countries with ageing populations should take steps to adapt public programs to the growing proportion of older persons, including by improving the sustainability of social security and pension systems and by establishing universal health care and long-term care systems.
• A sustained drop in fertility has led to an increased concentration of the population at working ages (between25and 64years), creating an opportunity for accelerated economic growth per capita:

Recommendation:

• To maximize the potential benefits of a Favourable age distribution, countries need to invest in the further development of their human capital by ensuring access to healthcare and quality education at all ages and by promoting opportunities for productive employment and decent work
• Over the next few decades, migration will be the sole driver of population growth in high-income countries.

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