Only 12 years after the global population reached seven billion people, the world welcomed its eight billionth inhabitant on Tuesday, Nov. 15.
While eight billion is the largest number of people alive at one time in Earth’s history, the birth rate across the planet has never been lower. In 2020, the global birth rate fell below one percent, marking the slowest reported birth rate since 1950. With the current birth rate predictions pointing to further declines in the future, the global population is predicted to reach a peak of 10.4 billion around the 2080s and settle around that number until the 2100s.
Although the global birth rate appears to be falling, the birth rates of many developing countries are on the rise. According to the United Nations, only eight nations make up more than half of the global population growth. Among these countries are the three Sub-Saharan African countries, Ethiopia, Congo and Nigeria, whose populations are projected by the United Nations to “double between 2022 and 2050, putting additional pressure on already strained resources and challenging policies aimed to reduce poverty and inequalities.”
India, which is predicted to pass China and become the most populous country in the world, is among those with steadily growing population rates. Egypt, the Philippines, Tanzania and Pakistan finish out the list of countries predicted to make up half of the global population growth in the coming years.
The rapid population growth in these developing countries has already begun to cause issues within the everyday lives of citizens. The high populations have increased food and water scarcity and are predicted to leave more and more families without essential resources in the coming years. Issues such as climate change have also heavily damaged crop production and furthered this issue all across the world.
As citizens in developing countries face famine and water shortage, many experts retain that the bigger issue at hand is the consumption by those living in developed countries. According to the Associated Press, “the key issue isn’t the number of people as much as how a small fraction of those people are causing way more than their share of carbon pollution.” While many living in developing countries have faced devastating climate catastrophes in recent years, their countries have contributed little to no pollution.
Since 1959, the United States (containing 4.5 percent of the global population) has produced a staggering 21.5 percent of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions. While Africa, (making up 16.7 percent of the world’s population) has only released 3 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. Despite these disproportionate contributions to climate change, droughts due to these changing conditions have left over 300 million people in Africa in a water-scarce environment.
As the global population continues to rise, issues regarding over-consumption will continue to grow and affect the entire world. While the welcoming of the eight billionth person into the world is a milestone to celebrate, there is no better time to consider the ramifications of the ever-growing population on Earth.
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