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With the introduction of modern medicine and improved water and agriculture,
the infant mortality rate and the overall death rate has fallen. Populations
have doubled in many countries over the last 20-30 years. Now, with new
affluence and education of women, birth rates have dropped, but have they
dropped enough? With large numbers of women entering their child-bearing
years, we encounter 'population momentum': the population of the world, and
particularly in areas like India, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America,
will continue to grow at alarming rates.
To impose our values and our technology on peoples of various cultures,
without examining those peoples' beliefs would be a serious mistake. It is
important to understand how people feel about limiting families and how they
feel about the various methods of birth control, in order to decide how to
best help them help themselves in family planning. We can't just simply send
over a bunch of condoms. That may work in some cases, but in most, it could
be a waste of money and effort, and may insult the people you are intending
to help. Let us here attempt to summarize what we know about the government
policies, beliefs, culture, geographical limitations, and sustainability of
various regions and list what are the various ways to motivate people to
limit their family size.
The population of industrialized countries is about 1 billion while the
population of developing countries is about 5 billion. From a Population
Reference Bureau teaching pamphlet on Child 6 Billion.
The world's average growth rate is 1.31%. If it were not falling, it would
double in 40-50 years. Fortunately the growth rate is falling. It was at
it's peak in the late 1960s, at 2.04%. The question is, are growth rates
falling fast enough? UNFPA Oct. 1999
Five developing countries today are responsible for more than 50 percent of
the world's increase in population: India, China, Indonesia, Pakistan, and
Nigeria.
Trends in Births, Life Expectancy,
Fertility, and Age Structure, 1975-2000 Table by country from
the World Resources Institute
Comprehensive table by country of important
statistics Contraceptive prevalance, unmet need, cropland per
person, human development index, population growth rate, per capita income,
and much more! John Hopkins University Center for
Communication Programs
Searchable Population
database by country, year, rural-urban, male-female,
economic.
Perry-Castaneda Library Map Collection ... maps of countries
The average fertility rate for European countries is 1.4. In Japan, it's also 1.4. Even in some developing nations South Korea and Taiwan, for example - the rate is at or below 1.6. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette-7/12/99
UNFPA calculates that the world population will grow to 8.9 billion by the year 2050. By then, 59 per cent of the total will be living in Asia, followed by 20 per cent in Africa and 9 per cent in Latin America. The remaining 12 per cent will be in all other regions including North America and Europe. UNFPA Oct 1999
Countries where grainland per person has shrunk to 0.03 hectares, such as Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, each import some 70% of their grain. World Watch Report "A Demographically Divided World" April 1999
New Global Population Projections Shift Upwards.
World population projections for the year 2050 have been revised upwards, from 8.9 to 9.3 billion, with the most rapid growth expected in 48 "least developed countries." New data just released by the United Nations indicate that population will almost triple in these countries, rising from the current 658 million to 1.8 billion, despite declining fertility rates and the severe impact of HIV/AIDS. By 2015, the populations of 35 African countries are projected to total 10% less than they would have without AIDS. But even in Botswana, Swaziland, and Zimbabwe, populations are projected to increase significantly between 2000 and 2050: by 37% in Botswana, 148% in Swaziland, and 86% in Zimbabwe. Only in South Africa, where fertility rates are lower than in the other highly affected countries, do growth rate projections drop. From 2010-2025, negative population growth is expected. Following this, positive rates are expected to resume from 2025-2050.
March 1, 2001 Global Intersections
All of the people in the European Union's (EU) 15 countries share 6.3% of the world's population, with the figure of 375,329,400 in 1998. The other European countries accounted for 7.3%. The United States, Japan and other more developed countries account for an additional 7.6%. As for undeveloped countries, China takes the lion's share of 20.8% of the world's population, followed by India with 16.7%. The rest of the world's less developed countries hold 41.3%. Eurostat - Xinhua news Aug 18, 1999
In the Third World, where 98 percent of future population growth is expected to take place, there have been dramatic declines. The average fertility rate for developing countries, excluding China, is now 3.8. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette-7/12/99
UN Begins Session On Population Issues
UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, addressing the session, said that since
the first population conference 25 years ago, fertility in developing
countries has dropped from 5 to less than 3 children,
family planning has increased from 30% to 60%, child mortality has gone from
from 140 per 1,000 live births to only 80 now, average life expectancy has
risen to 66 from 59 years, and the number of women who die in child birth
has equally declined. Globally, the growth rate as slowed from 2 to 1.3% per
year,". However,
girls get less education than boys, many women cannot choose
when to be pregnant, there is still a prevalence of sexual violence,
unsafe abortion and sexually transmitted diseases. June 30, 1999 Africa News Service, Inc.
Dec 98: Annual population growth rates vary widely among countries, from negative growth among some Eastern European countries to very high growth rates among some African and Asian countires. Altogether, there are 24 countries, constituting 1.7% of the world population, that exhibit average annual growth rates of 3% or higher. On the other side of the spectrum, 24 countires, with 6.1% of the global population, have declining populations. Two thirds of the world live in the 88 countries that exhibit growth rates between .5 and 2% annually.
Total fertility is still above 6.5 births per woman in 10 countries or areas, namely Afghanistan, Angola, Burkina Faso, the Gaza Strip, Malawi, Mali, the Niger, Somalia, Uganda, and Yemen. Commission on Population and Development Concise report on world population monitoring, 1999: population gorwth, structure and distribution
Yemen has the world's highest fertility rate 7.6%, with Oman (7.2%), Uganda
(7.1%) and Niger (7.1%) close behind.
The lowest infant mortality rate is in Japan, at 4 deaths per
1,000 births. The highest is in Sierra Leone at 169.5 infant deaths per
births. Global fertility has fallen from 5 births per woman in the 1950s to
2.7 births per woman. UNFPA
In about 71 nations and territories in Africa, Asia, the Mideast and Latin
America, more than 40% of the population is under 15.UN
More than 95% of those teens live in less-developed nations where many
governments are already struggling to meet current needs for social and
infrastructure services, even with a continued decline in fertility rates.
UNFPA The State of the World Population 1998
Breakdown by Continent/Region (in millions)
| Continent | 1999 | 2025 |
| Asia | 3,588 | 4,785 |
| Africa | 778 | 1,454 |
| Europe | 729 | 701 |
| United States and Canada | 304 | 369 |
| Australasia, S. Pacific | 29 | 41 |
| Latin America, Caribbean | 499 | 690 |
Total fertility Rates by Region
Number of children per woman
| Region | 1980 | 1995 |
| All developing countries | 4.1 | 3.1 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 6.7 | 5.7 |
| East Asia/Pacific | 3.1 | 2.2 |
| South Asia | 5.3 | 3.5 |
| Mideast/North Africa | 6.1 | 4.2 |
| Latin America/Caribbean | 4.1 | 2.8 |
|
World's 10 largest cities, including surrounding areas (in millions) 1999 | |
| Tokyo | 28.8 |
| Mexico City | 17.8 |
| Sao Paulo | 17.5 |
| Bombay | 17.4 |
| New York | 16.5 |
| Shanghai | 14.0 |
| Los Angeles | 13.0 |
| Lagos | 12.8 |
| Calcutta | 12.7 |
| Buenos Aires | 12.3 |
|
Countries with highest child mortality (deaths per 1,000 births) 1999 |
|
| Sierre Leone | 170 |
| Afghanistan | 151 |
| Malawi | 138 |
| East Timor | 135 |
| Guinea-Bissau | 130 |
| Angola | 125 |
| Guinea | 124 |
| Rwanda | 124 |
| Somalia | 122 |
| Gambia | 122 |
US in the World:
Connecting People and Communities by Population Reference Bureau.
This is the sister city concept, linking states in the US with (mostly
developing) 'sister' countries having similarities or contrasts.
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| Country | Population, 1996 |
Annual Growth Rate, 1990-95 |
Total Fertility Rate, 1990-95 |
Contraceptive Prevalence Rate, 1988-92 |
| (million) | (percent) | (children per woman) | (percent) | |
| China | 1,218 | 1.1 | 2.0 | 83 |
| India | 950 | 1.9 | 3.8 | 43 |
| United States | 265 | 1.0* | 2.1 | 74 |
| Indonesia | 201 | 1.6 | 2.9 | 50 |
| Brazil | 161 | 1.7 | 2.9 | 66 |
| Russia | 148 | -0.1 | 1.5 | 22 |
| Japan | 126 | -0.3 | 1.5 | 64 |
| Germany | 82 | -0.6 | 1.3 | 75 |
| Total | 3,151 | 1.3 | -- | -- |
| *includes immigration | ||||
Watch your population language - 'population control' as a term is inaccurate and insensitive.
Is it Really a Problem of Culture/Beliefs or Just
Lack of Assistance?
Many industrialised countries have low population annual growth rates (US,
0.6%, Japan 0.2% European Union 0.1%), while
some countries have negative growth rates ( -0.5%, Germany
-0.1%, Ukraine -0.6%).UNFPA '99
See Population Decline
Population Pyramids
Pyramids show what portion of a country is in its child-bearing years,
giving an
idea of how long that country may continue to grow even after family
planning begins
to take hold. Pyramids show population by age group:
 |
 |
US Census
Bureau demographics by country
more US
Census Bureau demographics by country
Population
pyramids by country
Mid-1998 World Population by Country Population Reference Bureau
Your Nation - provides access to statistics from around the world in novel ways. For example, the Compare option lets you choose two countries from drop-down boxes and then choose a category--everything from paved airports to life expectancy. When you click the Generate button, Your Nation presents the data with a graphic and note summarizing the difference between the two nations in that particular category. The Rank feature allows you to view the top five or bottom five in a selected category. Summary provides a quick snapshot of a nation's data, including population, gross domestic product, literacy, and life expectancy.
| Top 15 Countries Ranked by Population: 1999 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Rank | Country | Population |
| 1 | China | 1,246,871,951 |
| 2 | India | 1,000,848,550 |
| 3 | United States | 272,639,608 |
| 4 | Indonesia | 216,108,345 |
| 5 | Brazil | 171,853,126 |
| 6 | Russia | 146,393,569 |
| 7 | Pakistan | 138,123,359 |
| 8 | Bangladesh | 127,117,967 |
| 9 | Japan | 126,182,077 |
| 10 | Nigeria | 113,828,587 |
| 11 | Mexico | 100,294,036 |
| 12 | Germany | 82,087,361 |
| 13 | Philippines | 79,345,812 |
| 14 | Vietnam | 77,311,210 |
| 15 | Egypt | 67,273,906 |
- from the Population Reference Bureau
| Country | TFR* |
| Spain | 1.15 |
| Latvia | 1.16 |
| Czech Republic | 1.18 |
| Bulgaria | 1.24 |
| Italy | 1.24 |
| *TFR=The total fertility rate: the average number of children a woman would have in her lifetime if the birth rate of a particular year remained constant. | |
More on negatve population growth here.
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| More pictures |
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Asia is one of the fastest growing places in the world
Asia is a big place with big problems, too big for this page. Please click here for our Asia page
India, with 1 billion people and growing, has it's own page. Click here for the India page
Azerbaijan
Family planning prevents abortions.
Population 7.5 million people. Average income: $402. Population growth is
only 1.1% year. Located along the western shore of the oil-rich Caspian Sea,
contaminated soil has left the environment desolate and unusable. Health
facilities are deteriorated and the area suffers political and economic
unstability. Abortions were the main form of birth control and paid doctor's
incomes. Modern contraceptives were unavailable through the public sector
and sex education was non-existent. In 1996, the UNFPA awarded Pathfinder
$1.4 million to establish a family planning and reproductive health program
in Azerbaijan. Community-based service, information, education, and
communication are the main components. Post-abortion contraception was
taught to stop the cycle of repeat abortion procedures. Women are given the
option to use condoms, oral contraceptives, and IUDs to plan their families.
Booklets, television information spots, radio programs, nespaper articles,
and seminars for journalists on family planning topics were provided. There
has been a dramatic 40-50% decline in the number of abortions performed over
the past two years.
Belarus
The Belarusian population has decreased by 1% since 1989, due to mortality
growth and birth rate fall. The birth rate is half of what it was in 1986.
In the nine months, more than 107,000 Belarusian people died, which is 7,000
people more than over the same period last year. Death frequently results
from diseases caused by the Chernobyl disaster and worsened ecology.
December 23, 1999 Itar-Tass
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, a vast Central Asian state of 15 million people, produced just
6.4 million tons of grain in 1998, its lowest grain crop for 30 years and
1/4 of Soviet-era levels. In the city of Almaty in Kazakhstan, USAID has
provided education to doctors and nurses and increased contraceptive
supplies to 28 clinics. In 1993, the number of people receiving these
contraceptives increase by 59% while abortions fell 41%.
Russia
The population was 146 million in July 1999. The number of new births in
January-May dropped to 507,300 compared to 531,100 during the same period
the previous year. The number of deaths increased from 844,400 to 903,000.
The net increase due to migration, is 53,300. In Russia, there are fears
that the population may shrink by nearly half in the next 50 years. They
canceled the census for 1999 because of lack of money and because they are
afraid of what it might reveal. The death rate has climbed from 11 deaths
per 1,000 people in 1991, the year of the Soviet collapse, to 15 per 1,000
last year. Life expectancy has fallen, especially for men, plunging from 65
years in 1987 to a low of 58 in 1995. For every 15 people who die, only nine
are born. Population has fallen from about 148 million in 1991 to about 146
million now. 200,000 to 300,000 immigrants are coming into Russia annually,
most of them ethnic Russians moving back from other former Soviet republics.
The higher death rate is blamed on social stress and bad public health.
Alcoholism causes accidents and heart disease, leading to 70% of men's
deaths in Russia. New York Times August 1999
Russia's population is not large in comparison to its natural resources. Russians have ready access to contraceptives, but they also rely heavily on abortion. Since the collapse of government structures, a diminished health care system, and increased use of alcohol and tobacco have lowered the life span. MBSN September 1999
More on Russia: Besides gynological problems and sterility, by 2002 it is predicted there would be two million cases of HIV and AIDS in the country. In addition, there were 108,000 - 150,000 new cases of tuberculosis this year, compared to the U.S.'s 18,000 new cases. There has been an alarming increase in multi-drug resistant TB which could spill over into Western Europe if the epidemic is not checked. Other problems include the release of chemicals and heavy metals into the water supply and air which cause genetic and other diseases, the high consumption of alcohol and tobacco, a low-vitamin diet, bad harvests, poverty, and chaos in the food distribution system, and suicide. October 22, 1999 Reuters
Russia: Ban Abortions and Marry Early: Zhirinovsky's Answer to Population
Slide.
Russian ultra-nationalist politician and LDPR party chief Vladimir
Zhirinovsky wants to deny women in good health under the age of 42 the right
to an abortion for a 10-year period, lower the legal marriage age for girls
from 18 to 15, and he wants the military to ensure Russia's 1.2 million
soldiers receive "comfort" visits from their wives or girlfriends. The
Russian population has fallen by 2.8 million, or 2%, over the past eight
years. It is predicted to fall by 700,000 in 2001 to 144.5 million
inhabitants. October 12, 2000 Agence France
Presse
Russia: Is Government Ready to Tackle Demographic Crisis?
In special parliamentary hearings, Russia's decline in population was
discussed. According
to the RF State Statistics Committee, in 1992 Russia's permanent population
was 148.7 million people, while at the beginning of 2000 it was only 145.5
million, decreasing by 2%. Last year it decreased by 768,400 people, or by
0.5%. During January and February 2000, Russia's population fell by 157,800,
which is 13.6% higher than the decrease
for the same period of 1999. Life expectancy is down to 59.8 years for men
and 72.2
years for women. Recently, there were 2-3 times more deaths than births in
27 regions, 3 deaths per birth in 10 provinces, and in one Province, four
deaths per birth. The
number of babies born in 1998 declined by nearly 50% compared to 1987, and
dropped another 5.3% from 1998 to 1999. Second and third child births are
almost halved. Only 1.3 million of 4 million pregnancies end in births.
Normal births account for 31.8%, and in some regions only 25%. Infertility
occurs among 15% of married couples. One third of newborns has defects. The
number of people who died in 1999 was 7.6% greater than in 1998. this
Russion supermortality is caused by mass impoverishment, domestic civilian
conflicts and a sharp rise in disease. The main causes of death among the
working-age
population are accidents, poisoning, and injuries. The underlying causes
are: protracted social and economic crisis, unemployment, chronic delays in
the payment of wages, salaries, pensions and social-welfare benefits, the
decreased affordability of medical care and medicines, prolonged
psychological stress, uncertainty about one's future and the future of one's
children, and the criminalization of society. The death rate of 15 to 19
year olds has increased by 40%. At this rate, only 54% of today's
16-year-old boys will live to retirement age. 100 years ago, 56% of men
lived until age 60. Only 10% to 12% of the younger school children are
healthy, 8% in the middle grades, and 5% in the upper
grades. 50% of teenagers aged 15 to 17 suffer from chronic ailments.
August 23, 2000 Post-Soviet Press
Turkey
Suicides of Women Rising in Traditional Southeast Turkey.
The suicide rate in southeast Turkey has rise over 50% since 1993. 80% of
the suicides are by women and 75% of those are between the ages of 13 and
25, according to government figures. Guerrilla warfare waged by Kurds and
the military's destruction or evacuation of about 2,000 villages has
displaced hundreds of thousands of people, forcing them into city slums and
shattering the traditional agrarian economy of the area. Tribal traditions
are still strong and illiteracy is widespread. Girls as young as 13 are
sometimes married to sexagenarians against their will and many girls are not
allowed out of the house by their
fathers or husbands. Availability of television in the area has shown these
women that there are different lifestyles in the West, making them less
likely to suffer in silence. "The suicide rate among women is high in
conservative and repressive societies," said Radhika Coomaraswamy, the
United Nations envoy on violence against women. China, for example, has one
of the highest suicide rates among rural women--almost 500 per day. November 9, 2000 Washington Post
Australia
Australia's population reached 19 million in 1999, and is not expected to
add another million until 2005, and 26 million in 2050. Australia's annual
growth rate remains among the lowest in the world. Natural increase
accounted for 47% of the growth while migration had contributed 53%.
Africa's rate of growth is the highest in the world--at 2.36 percent UN Report Nov 98
Africa, with 13% of the world's population, is projected to see 34% of the globe's population increase over the next 50 years. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette-7/12/99
Africa has 13% of the world's population, and 69% of the world's HIV or AIDS cases. Still, the population of the African continent is expected to rise from 800 million now to 1.8 billion in 2050, because the fertility rate of 38 births per 1,000 people is still much higher than the mortality rate of 14 deaths per 1,000. Also, 43% of the continent's population is under age 15. June 8, 2000 ENN/AP
Africa now produces nearly 30% less food per person than in 1967. Sept 1999 ...Johns Hopkins University Center for Communication Programs
Africa is a big place with big problems, too big for this page. Please click here for our Africa page
Arabian Gulf States Taking New Steps to Curb Population
Growth. The six members of the Gulf Co-operation Council
(GCC),Bahrain, Oman, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, have a combined
total population of 28 million, more than a third of them foreign workers.
This figure is projected to be more than 56 million by 2025. The latest oil
slump has given the GCC a foretaste of the fiscal troubles in store if they
insist on maintaining the current generous level of social benefits to their
citizens. Population projections portend large-scale unemployment, falling
standards of living, economic decline and political disaffection. The
liberal states have embraced birth-control programmes, but the more
conservative states fail to see that the problems with population increase.
Population increased at an annual rate of 6.17% between 1975 and 1985, and
at 4.45% between 1985 and 1995. The world annual growth rate was 1.5% in
1995.
None of the states has promoted family planning at the official level but
they have ensured easy availability of birth-control devices. The United
Arab Emirates has included family planning as a health service; Bahrain has
taken up reproductive health programmes that include family planning
projects; and Oman is aiming for a reduction in the size of families. In
Qatar, one of the most sparsely populated Gulf states, the Qatar Red
Crescent and other health centres are promoting awareness among young,
educated people about the importance of adequate spacing between
pregnancies. All six countries have large family sizes: 8.5 members in
Oman and 6.5 in Bahrain, for example. Early marriages have decreased. The
decisions of educated women about when and whom to marry are becoming less
influenced by traditional forces. Bahrain has 3.2 births per woman, Oman has
7.1, Kuwait and the UAE has 4.5, and Saudi Arabia has 5.7 births.
Contraceptive use was over 66% for women with secondary or higher education
and with 53% among illiterate women; in Bahrain and Kuwait it was at 62% and
50%, respectively. In the UAE and Saudi Arabia, it ranged between 27% and
32%, and Oman had 24%.November 1, 1999 Earthtimes
Algeria
Algeria's population is 29.2 million. The population annual growth rate from
1987 to 1997 was 2.28%. From 1977 to 1987 it was 3.06% and 3.12% from 1966
to 1977. 80.8% of the population are centered in major residential areas,
up from 56.1% in 1966.
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Egypt grows by 1 million people every eight months or 2.4 persons every minute - contributing somewhere between 1/7 and 1/10 of the world's growth. 11.4 percent of the population lives in Cairo. Egypt hopes to develop communities in the Sinai Peninsula and Toshka, channelling Nile water to reclaim land from the desert. |
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Egypt Working Harder To Improve Women's Lives.
According to Prime Minister Atef Obeid, Egypt is taking steps to reduce
poverty and illiteracy among women. Illiteracy for women is three times that of men and women control only 12% of the country's top jobs. However, Egypt hopes to reduce the illiteracy rate by half a million every year. It is now compulsory for illiterate women between the ages of 14 and 35 to attend literacy classes. Loans were given equally to 70,000 men and women to set up or have partnerships in productive projects. Government jobs were equally given to men and women last year. A law passed last year allows women to initiate divorce proceedings. Women can now obtain a passport without the request of their husbands. But of the country's 33-member Cabinet, only two are women, and just seven of 109 female candidates won seats in last year's parliamentary elections. [Note: improving women's lives has been shown to bring down birth rates.]
March 14, 2001 Associated Press
Gaza
Hanan Suelem wanted an abortion after the 7th pregnancy, but Islamic clerics
told her that she would be "killing a soul." She told them that her soul was
dying. "After this, no more, never," she said, speaking almost in a whisper.
"I have learned now about the IUD." The area's schools operate on two and
three shifts to accommodate the growing Palestinian population. Gaza's
population of 1.1 million is expected to double by 2014. Half are under age
15. It is already a highly congested area with few jobs, severely inadequate
housing and almost no natural resources. The West Bank and Gaza combined
have a population of over 3 million, which is expected to rise to 5.5
million in 14 years. The fertility rate is seven children per woman. Almost
all the babies survive and adults live to an average of 73. Many young
Palestinians do not want their children to suffer as they did in oversized
poor families, but large families are not only traditional, but a point of
nationalist pride, and as a way to outnumber the Israelis on the land the
two groups share. Fortunately, health and education officials quietly
support family planning through clinics and community outreach services.
Women are taught about the different methods of contraception that are
acceptable under Islam -- anything except permanent means, like
sterilization or tubal ligation. The IUD and birth control pills are growing
in favor. Health officials refer delicately to the "spacing" of children,
since the suggestion to place limits on family size would violate Islamic
teaching. Women are told that it is written in the Koran that God orders
women to breast-feed for two years. Women in the West Bank average 5.6
children per woman, compared to Israel, with about 2.7 children, the
worldwide average. Gaza grows at over 4% a year while Israel is grows only
2% a year, which includes high levels of immigration. Palestinian advocates
are pushing for a law that would raise the legal age of marriage, since half
of Palestinian women marry before they reach age 18, and it is legal for
them to marry at 15 in Gaza and 17 in the West Bank. February
24, 2000 NY Times ... Cramped Gaza Multiplies at Unrivaled Rate.
Iran
Iran has 65 million people. Fertility rate is 2.6 births per woman. Life
expectancy is 69.3. Annual growth rate is 1.3%. The growth
rate, 1.4% in 1996, is expected to rise to 1.7% in 2001 when post-revolution
babyboomers reach reproductive age. 52% of Iranians are under the age of 20
and 62% are under 25. Current population is believed to be 63 million. After
the 1979 Islamic revolution, birthrates soared, until the growth rate
reached 3.2% in 1986. In 1988 the UN helped establish a population control
program. The late spiritual leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ruled that
contraception was not un-Islamic in 1989. Pre-marriage family planning
counseling has helped raise the average marriage age from 19.9 in 1986, to
the current age 22.4, an important step in reducing 'population momentum'.
Iran is conducting a program that has reached the smallest villages. Despite
losing a million young people to the war with Iraq, Iran may still double
its population, by 2050. A majority of the current population is under 25,
causing population to climb steeply in a country with limited water and
other natural resources, exacerbating economic woes. Iran's family planning
program is "one of the most successful in the world, and reaches almost the
entire population. Family planning messages are on television and movies.
There are mobile clinics, and 35,000 health volunteers, in a system modeled
on that of the former Soviet Union. Contraceptives are free and available."
However, condoms are available only to married couples since premarital sex
is not condoned. People in Iran usually want no more than two children, and
they're willing to wait until they're 22 or 23 to start a family." Since
1979, contraceptive use by Iranian women has gone from 26% to 75%. While
still high, Iranian fertility rates are dropping rapidly.
Iran's first National Human Development Report says that mortality rates for children under age 5 have dropped in recent years from 85 to 37 per 1,000 and life expectancy has risen eight years, to 69.5. Adult literacy has also risen from 57% to nearly 75%. January 3, 2000 UNDP
Iraq
Dec 98
The total fertility rate is 5.2 children per woman. However, due to economic
sanctions imposed for the last eight years, fewer people are financially
able to marry. One Iraqi newspaper estimated that as many as 70% of Iraqi
men and women between the ages of 18 and 40 have been unable to get married.
It sounds like this would bring the birth rate down considerably. A baby
born in Iraq has a 12.7% chance of dying before its first birthday.
Israel
Fertility rates have been declining, but Israeli Jewish women still bear an
average 2.6 children each. In Jewish settlements in the disputed
territories, women have an average of 4.7 children,
reflecting "both a political and religious imperative to
populate the land" USA Today, Barbara Slavin, July
99
Jordon
Population 4,701,000. Compared to many Third World countries, Jordan, a
desert country of 4.6 million, has made real progress. Over 20 years, the
fertility rate, has dropped from 7.4 births a woman to 4.4. In addition to
government support of family planning, both Queen Noor and Princess Basma,
the wife and sister of the late King Hussein, are long-time patrons of
high-profile foundations promoting family planning and women's empowerment.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch August 1999 Rate of
natural increase in 1998: 3.1, expected to decline to 2.3 in 2010. Annual
rate of growth in 1998: 2.5, expected to decline to 2.3 in 2010.
Kuwait
2.1 million people. The growth rate is 2.2% a year. Fertility rate is 3.2
children per woman. 65 percent of primary-school-age children attend
classes. Birth rates have declined by 60% or more in recent years. There is
virtually no risk of polio or vitamin A deficiency and little risk of
children being orphaned by AIDS.
Morocco
At least 228 women die per 100,000 births in Morocco during childbirth,
partly due to to hemorrhaging, hypertension and infections, according to
figures released Sunday at a meeting of the International Planned Parenthood
Federation in Rabat. Morocco's rate is 2-3 times higher than some Arab
countries and 25 times higher than in Europe. Meanwhile, the average
fertility rate dropped from 7.2 in 1962 to 2.8 in 2000, while contraceptive
use rose from 19.4% in 1980 to 58.8% in 1997. Worldwide, more than 580,000
women die during pregnancy and delivery each year, 99% of them in developing
countries. Of the more than 580,000 deaths during pregnancy or delivery each
year world-wide, 99% occur in developing countries.
May 14, 2000 Panafrican News Agency
Yemen
Yemen has the world's highest fertility rate at 7.6%. The population is
estimated at 16 million, growing by 3.7% a year. Yemen is one of the Arab
world's poorest nations with per capita GDP of $280 a year.
In the mid-1960's, Latin American women averaged more than 6 children. Today the average is 2.9. The benefits of smaller families are seen not only in a better life for children and their parents, but also in an increased savings rate and less cost to the state. However, with the high numbers of women in their childbearing years, population growth will continue to be a problem.
Latin America
Professor David Kyle, UC Davis: Due
to a high birth rate and a falling death rate, Latin America overtook the US
in population around the middle of the twentieth century.
Between 15 and 26 percent of new-borns in Latin America and the Caribbean
are children of adolescents. Of the 13 million births reported each year in
the region, two million are to mothers between the ages of 15 and 19,
according to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Brazil
Because of the Catholic Church, the state makes little investment in family
planning. Individual states and the private sector, however, have made birth
control widely available. Individuals have embraced family planning despite
their religious backgrounds. Per capita income is about $4,700. The infant
mortality rate is surprisingly high, at 41 out of every 1,000 die before one
year of age.
Brazil has seen a decline of over 50% in the nation's fertility rate over the past three decades. Brazilian women gave birth to an average of six children until the 1970s. Today women bear an average of 2.2 children. Of homes in Brazil, 32% do not have telephone lines and 21% do not have sewage service. The employment rate is at 7.3 percent. Smaller families mean more services, more government funds for health care and education, and families can afford more goods. Telenovela, a kind of soap opera, have helped educate people on family planning. 87% of households have a television set while only 32% have a washing machine. January 18, 2000 Houston Chronicle
Brazil has cut infant-mortality rates nearly 30% in the past decade. December 13, 2000 The Orlando Sentinel Brazil Kids Still at Risk
Columbia
Families Choose To Have Fewer Children.
Profamilia conducted a national survey of demography and health and found
that over one-third of the 1.1 million children born every year in Colombia
are from unwanted pregnancies. Columbia's average children per family has
dropped from seven 35 years ago to a current average of two. Female
sterilization has increased. Columbians have suffered destruction of their
homes, inequality between men and women and a long endurance of civil war.
Young women "decide that their children are not going to suffer like their
mothers." Columbia has advanced in maternal health, child nutrition and
family planning, but is lacking in adequate sexual education, leading to
unwanted pregnancies and abortions. The number of women between the ages of
15 and 19 who have given birth or become pregnant increased over the past 10
years from 11% to 19%. October 22, 2000 El
Tiempo
Cuba
Population: 11.2 million. Fertility rate: 1.6 births per woman. Growth rate:
0.7%. Cropland per person: .41 hectares. Between 1975 and 1995, UNFPA gave
Cuba more than $17 million for programs on reproductive health, the island's
changing demographics, and education and information on population issues.
Statistics on the island indicate low infant and maternal mortality rates, a
life expectancy of more than 75 years, and negative replacement rate since
1978. In addition, the government guarantees universal access to health and
family planning services. Abortions have been available at the mother's
request in every gynecology and obstetrics office since 1965, but there is
evidence that it is sometimes used as a method of birth control. On the
other hand, there are high rates of teenage pregnancy and a growing
incidence of sexually transmitted diseases, including the acquired immune
deficiency syndrome (AIDS). Specialists predict that Cuba's positive health
achievements could deteriorate, due to the combination of the economic
crisis that has plagued the island since 1990, the impact of the United
States blockade, and the cutbacks in UNFPA aid. Access to high-quality
contraception devices is threatened.
Inter Press Service November 9, 1999
Cuba's infant mortality rate, "already one of the lowest in the world," fell to some 6.5 deaths per 1,000 births in 1999, down from 7.1 in 1998 and 11 ten years ago. Cuba offers free health service for all. Cuba still has shortages in medicine because of the US economic blockade against the country but that the situation is improving slowly. December 27, 1999 Reuters
Guatemala
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Migrants Endanger Parks And Historic Ruins. A population boom in Guatemala's Peten region has led to a rise in widespread fires and deforestation, but the government lacks the money and manpower to extinguish the blazes and arrest perpetrators. The area may loose 125,000 acres of forest if rains do not come. The Peten region covers one-third of the country and features the environmentally fragile jungles of the Maya Biosphere Reserve and the El Ceibal national park, which contains Mayan ruins. But the area's population is estimated to have grown from 20,000 in 1960 to almost half a million people, in part due to peasants returning from exile in Mexico after the end of Guatemala's 36-year civil war in 1996. Squatters setting fires, slash-and-burn farming, poachers smoking out prey, and poor peasants who hope to be hired onto fire brigades are blamed. May 22, 2000 NY Times
Haiti
Despite Aid Programs, Haiti's Rural Areas Remain Mired in Poverty
Haiti is a country of 7.6 million people, with a projected population
in 2025 of 11.4 million. Life expectancy is about 53. Income is $410 a year.
Five years ago Haiti's military dictatorship was removed and Haiti's first
democratically elected president was reinstated. 5 million inhabitants
reside in isolated squalor, the poorest of the poor in the Western
Hemisphere. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) spent over
$300 million in five years on rural programs such as vaccinations for
children, distribution of contraceptives, school food projects, small loans
for small businesses, development of local courts and a hillside
agricultural program that boosted low incomes by 17% for about 166,000
farmers. Introduction of sound agricultural practices such as fruit tree
grafting and cultivating high value export crops such as cocoa, coffee,
mangoes and manioc have helped considerably. Haiti's agricultural sector
grew 2.1% in 1998; it would have been 4% except for the ravages of Hurricane
George. 200 miles of roads have been built in the rural areas. But aid has
been inadequate. Land reform is still needed, with clashes over who owns the
land: peasants or landowners whose claims to the land are dubious. Many
plots are inadequate in size, the majority being about 3 acres. Haiti
produces only half of its food requirements. 30-40% of harvests are lost or
damaged while being transported due to poor roads. 75% of rural Haitian
families spend more than 3/4 of their income for each member to eat at least
2,250 calories a day. Trees are being cut down for construction supplies and
charcoal for cooking. Only 1.5% of Haiti's natural forests remain intact.
Consequently a significant amount of top soil is washed away each year. 19%
of Haiti's land can be irrigated from surface or ground water, but less than
half of that actually is irrigated. Chronic malnutrition in children under 5
is 20% in the urban area, compared with 35% in rural areas.
November 4, 1999 Washington Post
Jamaica
In this country with a population of 2.5 million, there are about 650,000
women of reproductive age; that is, between 15 and 44 years old. There is a
high rate of teenage pregnancy. In a survey, only 13% said they wanted the
baby. The average age for first sexual contact is 16 years for girls and 14
years for boys. The age of first intercourse rises with education and
socio-economic status. From an IPS article Apr 99
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Mexico From the Sierra Club Planet Dec 98 Population growth in many parts of Mexico has kept poor people from adequately feeding, clothing, educating, and caring for their children, and also has contributed to deforestation, loss of species, and air and water pollution. Men often oppose birth control because they fear it will make their wives unfaithful or reflect poorly on their masculinity. ... Contraceptive prevalence is 56%. There are between 300,000 and 600,000 illegal abortions each year in Mexico. Abortion is illegal there. Mexican Family Planning Foundation (Mexfam) director Alfonso Lopez Mexican Family Planning Association The country's fertility rate has dropped from 7 children in 1965, to 2.5 today. In 1974 President Luis Echeverria Alvarez established a National Population Council. For 25 years the jingle "Small families live better" has been heard on television. Smaller families mean Mexicans are able to build up savings and the economy is improving. Due to population momentum the population will continue to grow by about 1 million a year until 2045 when it should stop. Unemployment will remain high, because the economy cannot provide jobs for 1.3 million new workers each year. Due to joblessness, 3.5 million Mexicans are expected, in the next 10 years, to travel to the United States for work. New York Times, Jun 8, 1999 In 1950, the population of Mexico stood was 16.5 million. 146.6 million are projected for 2050. In 1950, life expectancy at birth was 50.6 years, women had about seven children on average, and about one in eight infants died at birth. Today, life expectancy is about 72, women have an average of about 2.7 children, and one in every 32 babies dies during birth. Alejandro Cervantes-Carson, a sociologist at Guilford College in Greensboro, N.C., says that the Mexico does not suffer not a lack of resources, but that social and economic inequities concentrate them in the hands of the wealthy. "The problem is not that Mexico does not produce enough food to feed its citizens. It does. The problem is that so few are well fed." October 12, 1999 The Washington Post The local Mexican institutions and U.S.-based nongovernmental agencies have partnered to create success stories in Mexico's family planning. The birth rate has gone from 7.2 children, in 1965, to 2.5 in 1999. Credit can be given Mexican agencies like the National Population Council and the nonprofit Mexican Foundation for Family Planning, or Mexfam, an affiliate of the International Planned Parenthood Federation. Media campaigns urge delay of marriage and pregnancy and emphasize the advantages of spacing the births of one's children. Vasectomy or tubal ligation are freely available. 70% of women of childbearing age have access to contraception. To avoid conflict with the Catholic Church, media ads list the advantages of a small family without direct mention of contraceptives. Sex education has even come to Mexico's public elementary schools. Much of the funding comes from U.S. government agencies, but the expiration of a bilateral agreement this year cut off the flow because a few members of Congress vehemently oppose not just abortion but even certain contraception methods. Denying help to agencies that provide proven family planning information and assistance is a sure way to curb progress. December 27, 1999 Los Angeles Times Mexico City - Situated in a valley surrounded by mountains that prevent winds from clearing the air, with 105,721 tons of contaminants per day from 4,623 factories, 48% of its residents suffer some chronic air pollution symptoms. The city wastes more than 40% of the 70,000 liters/second of water that its 20 million inhabitants require. 190 million tons of waste categorized as dangerous are produced each year, most coming from the chemical industry. September 13 1999 IPS Mexico City is the largest in the world by virtue of the size of its population -- currently put at 19 million -- and contributes about 48 percent of Mexico's gross domestic product (GDP) Mexico's population increased six-fold in the 20th century, from 17 million to 100 million. Mexico's rate of population growth peaked in the 1970s at 3.4 percent; the population rose at a 2.2 percent rate in the 1980s, and increased by 1.8 percent in 1999. About 36 percent of Mexicans live in nine cities with over one million residents, led by Mexico City with 17.3 million; Guadalajara with 3.4 million; and Monterrey with 3.2 million. Mexico City is not growing as fast as it did in the 1970s and 1980s, but more Mexicans are commuting to Mexico City from the six surrounding states. Some predict that, by 2050, the Mexico City metropolitan area, redefined to include the area from Cuautla in the south to Queretaro, 142 miles north of Mexico City, will have 50 million residents. The urban population first surpassed the rural population in Mexico in 1960. There were 24 million rural residents in 1995; they were 26 percent of Mexicans. The states with the highest percentages of rural residents included Oaxaca and Chiapas, 56 percent; Hidalgo, 52 percent; Zacatecas, 50 percent; and Tabasco, 48 percent. The Mexican labor force in 1996 was 39 million; 24.6 million men and 12 million women 12 and older worked during a survey week. Among all men in the labor force, 28 percent were in farming; 22 percent in services; 17 percent in manufacturing; and 14 percent in trade. Among women, 42 percent were in services; 23 percent in trade; 17 percent in manufacturing; and 10 percent in farming. In 1995, Mexican adults averaged 7.2 years of schooling. The share of the population in extreme poverty increased between 1992 and 1999, from 16 to 28%.Information from Banamex - BancaNet - International Banking
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Nicaragua
The population is almost 5 million, and the life expectancy rose from 44 to
66 years in four decades. Half of the population live in poverty and 1/5 in
extreme poverty. The UNFPA recently granted Nicaragua $250,000 for
population policy coordination, monitoring, evaluation, and plan of action.
Panama
50,000 people in lived in Panama in 1974. Population has quadrupled to more
than 200,000.
Quality of life has deteriorated due to exploitation of natural
resources, including: 6 times the world average usage of agrochemicals in
agriculture, overexploitation of hillside lands (leading to destruction of
the organic layer of the soil needed for food production), spillage of
cyanide compounds used in
mining near rivers, felling of forests (1/3 gone in forty years), and fecal
waste in drinking water.
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rican women are twice as likely as their U.S. mainland counterparts to opt for sterilization as a method of birth control. 45.6% of women in Puerto Rico have had their tubes tied, according to professor Judith Rodriguez of the Graduate School of Public Health. The high rate is partly due to lack of affordable alternative methods of birth control.
March 11, 2001 Orlando Sentinel -Puerto Rico: Women Opt for Sterilization
Peru
Peru's Ministry of Health has instigated a widespread sterilization
campaign. In 1997 alone, the government sterilized 110,000 women --
sometimes without informed consent.
Venezuela
With a population of 23 million, 80 percent live in poverty, with 14%
surviving by begging. 1/5 of the pregnancies occur with teenagers. The birth
rate is 3.3 children per woman, and up to 7 in rural areas. Infant mortality
rate is high at 27 deaths per 1,000 live births.
60% of the poorest families have no father, and 1/4 of all families are
headed by a single woman. Women are valued by "how much they produce" in
terms of children. Mar 99 IPS
Venezuela: Bank Offers Poverty-Fighting Loans. The People's Bank is offering financial support for the poor, using micro-credits in which "the human factor is more important than capital." Its goal is to formalize the informal economy, stimulate small businesses, and encourage individual savings. Following the example of the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, which recovers 95% of its loans and charges market-rate interest, the program will loan from $160 to $8,000, with an average of $800, in short-term loans that come due within three to twelve months. Venzuela's unemployment rate is 15%, with an expected 4% drop in the year's gross domestic product (GDP), and a fiscal deficit of $8 billion. September 9 1999 IPS
Poor Protection Allows Destruction of Venezuela's Exotic Wildlife. Venezuela's Amazon rain forests, sprawling plains, snowcapped Andean mountains and Caribbean coral reefs feature some of the world's most exotic wildlife. But the Environmental Ministry is understaffed, underpaid, rife with corruption and mired in confusion, according to the Venezuelan Audubon Society. Agents dispatched by environmentalists to protect the Orinoco turtle instead sold the turtles to restaurant owners who used them for turtle soup. Poachers openly sell endangered tropical parrots. Lake Maracaibo, the largest lake in South America, has become a "garbage pail" of oil and waste from tankers. Illegal gold miners uproot trees in Venezuela's rain forests with hydraulic water pumps and poison rivers with mercury. Coral reefs in Morrocoy National Park turned gray and died four years ago, probably due to toxic wastes dumped by ships. The government is building high-voltage electricity lines in rain forests in southeast Venezuela that are supposed to be protected by environmental laws. The lines pass through Canaima National Park one of 100 United Nations-designated World Heritage Sites - it features the world's longest waterfall, Angel Falls, and mysterious flat-topped mountains. The Pemon Indians knocked down several towers saying the power line will mar the landscape and spur widespread development by providing electricity to mining companies that want to exploit huge gold deposits in the region. President Chavez wants to move millions of people out of the cities in northern Venezuela to population and industrial centers to be built in the sparsely populated east and south, where much of the country's most spectacular wildlife lives. December 23, 1999 AP
50,000 feared dead in Venezuela Flooding and mudslides that have devastated the country. Survivors are still being rescued. 200,000 people have been left homeless. Water and sewage facilities are destroyed. The Red Cross has warned the entire relief system is on the verge of collapse. Economists say the disaster would aggravate a deep economic recession in the oil-rich country of 23 million. The population was allowed to grow in areas where the government knew about the dangers of flooding. 75% of the country's population lives in Caracas and the northern states, where the heaviest rainfall in 100 years has been falling for the last two weeks. December 21, 1999 BCC
Trinidad and Tobago: Child Marriage Customs under Scrutiny.
In this multi-ethnic and religious country, girls are allowed to become
brides when they reach puberty. But the government is planning on raising
the age of consent for marriage, perhaps to age 16, which the majority of
the country favors. Currently Muslim girls can marry at age 12, while Hindu
girls are allowed to marry at 14, although the Sexual Offenses Act makes it
illegal to have sex with a girl under the age of 14. The Roman Catholic
Church has a "universal law" which allows girls to marry at 14 and boys at
16. Some feel that it is better to have an early marriage than to have
abortion or to have a child out of wedlock. (Trinidad is 7 mi/km due east of
the northern tip of
Venezuela. Tobago is 21 mi/km northeast of Trinidad.)
August 19, 1999 IPS
The Netherlands
The Netherlands gains 300 people per day, 60% due to births minus deaths and
40% due to
immigration. It has a high population density: 450 people per square
kilometer, compared
to 343 in Japan and 28 in Canada. Click for a link to a
Dutch
Population web site: The Club of Ten Million, which
wishes slowly but with certainty to return
to ten million inhabitants in the Netherlands.
Spain
Spain has a population of nearly 40 million people, with 77 inhabitants per
square Km. It has the lowest birth rate in the world, at only 1.1 children
per woman. 20 years ago the birth rate was over 3 children per woman. Reasons
given for the decline are: availability of birth control, break from the Church,
more women want to work, delayed marriages, women feel they can't afford them.
Divorce is legal with a rate of 19%. 13% of homes are single-person. While 95%
of Spaniards are baptized Catholic, Spain has no state religion and only 40% are
practicing Catholics. There are also 250,000 non-Catholic Christians, 300,000
Muslims, and 12,000 Jews. It is thought that the current decline in number of
practicing Catholics is due to a backlash from the political censorship from a
lengthly dictatorship and the historical background of multi-culturalism which
includes Arab and Jewish. While Spanish is the principle language, Catalan is
spoken by 6 million. Spain is a monarchy and a democracy. Unemployment is high,
around 12.5% Major industries are: wine production and tourism. Spain is 25th in
the ranking of countries in terms of wealth, but the 9th country on the Human
Development index. Spain has a pension system and a free health care system. 70%
of the schools are public. Spain has a problem with immigration from Morocco
which is bonly 2 hours away by
boat across the Straights of Gibralter. 500,000 Moroccans live in Spain. In
Morocco there is 50% unemployment and 80% of the population is under 30. Spain
invests in social programs in Morocco.
Professor Marcos Rodriguez Espinosa, University of Malaga, November 2001
The United States
The 1999 U.S. population is 272 million, making it the world's third largest
country in terms of population, but only 1/4 of a billion compared with
China's and India's combined 2 billion. The US land size is about the size
of China.
WOA's U.S. Population Dynamics