- Population growth rates are much higher in most low- and middle-income countries than in
most high-income countries.
- Population growth rates have declined in low- and middle-income countries over the past
few decades but remain high because birth rates have not fallen as rapidly as death rates.
- There will be more than 1 billion more people in the world in 2010 than there were in
1995 (as population grows from 5.5 billion to 6.9 billion), and six out of seven of these
people will live in low- and middle-income countries.
- Although the population growth rate for developing countries has been decreasing
for several decades, the number of people added to the population each year has
been increasing because the population base has become larger.
- Countries that have a large proportion of their population in their childbearing years
often experience population momentum. Even if
couples have only enough children to replace themselves when they die, the population will
continue to grow and will not stabilize until the younger group ages beyond their
childbearing years.
- Birth rates tend to fall when parents have access to family planning, health care,
education and jobs.
- Population growth can make it more difficult to raise standards of living in some
countries and can put pressure on the environment.
- Two of the most successful strategies for reducing fertility rates are providing greater access to
primary health care and promoting education for girls and women.
|
1. Read and study the text and the definition of population growth rate and answer the following
questions.
- What does population growth rate measure?
- If you wanted to get an accurate picture of population growth trends in a country, would
you look at the average annual growth rate for a single year, or for a period of years?
Explain why.
2. Answer each of the following questions briefly, referring back to the text if necessary.
- Why have death rates and birth rates declined?
- What causes population momentum? What are its consequences?
- How might increasing urbanization affect environmental conditions in a country?
- To what extent does migration between your country and others, or from rural to urban
areas within your country affect your country’s economic, environmental, or social
situation?
- What sorts of services and support can a government provide to its citizens that will
help slow the population growth rate? Explain why you think these strategies may help.
- What might be some reasons why women with a basic education tend to have fewer children?
3. Calculate the annual population growth rate for countries A, B, and C using data
provided in the table below and this formula:*
Population increase
in a year |
� |
Population at
the start of
the year |
x |
100
|
= |
Annual population
growth rate (%) |
| |
Population
at the start of
the year |
Population
at the end
of the year |
Population
increase
during the
year |
Annual
population
growth
rate (%) |
| Country A |
22,000,000 |
22,400,000 |
|
|
| Country B |
8,500,000 |
8,800,000 |
|
|
| Country C |
400,000,000 |
410,000,000 |
|
|
*
(Average annual population growth rates for a period of years provide a
better picture than annual rates. For this reason, they are used in the Data Table.
Calculating any growth rate for a period longer than a year requires more complicated
mathematical formulas than the one used to calculate an annual rate.)
4. Population growth rates are small numbers, but they have large effects on
population. To see what this means, do the following:
- Assume the world population at the beginning of 1997 was about 5.8 billion. If the
projected 1997 average annual population growth rate for the world was 1.3%, how many more
people would be added to the world by 1998.
- If the 1997 world population grew at .2%, the same projected rate as the United Kingdom,
how many more people would be added to the world by 1998.
- If the 1997 world population grew at 2.2%, the same projected rate as Kenya, how many
more people would be added to the world by 1998.
- Use your answers to questions 3a,b, and c to make a general statement about the
relationship between population growth rates and the change in the size of a population.
5. Use the calculations and data in the table below to calculate the birth rates, death
rates, and population growth rates for three countries and fill in the missing
information.
Number of births
(%) |
� |
Population |
X |
100 |
= |
Birth rate |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Number of deaths (%) |
� |
Population |
X |
100 |
= |
Death rate |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Birth rate
(%) |
– |
Death rate
(%) |
= |
Population
growth rate
(%) |
|
| |
Births |
Deaths |
Population |
Birth
rate |
Death
rate |
Population
growth rate |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Country A |
662,000 |
297,000 |
33,100,000 |
|
|
|
Country B |
411,000 |
191,800 |
27,400,000 |
|
|
|
Country C |
211,200 |
96,800 |
4,400,000 |
|
|
|
6. If a population growth rate is low, population is growing slowly. If it is high,
population is growing rapidly. To understand what "slow" and "rapid"
mean, it helps to look at how long it will take different countries growing at different
rates to double their population.
- The number of years it takes a population to double can be estimated by dividing the
number 70 by that population's growth rate. Calculate the doubling time of populations
growing at the rates shown in the key to the map.
- Is three percent a rapid growth rate? Explain. Is two percent a rapid growth rate?
Explain. Is one percent a rapid growth rate? Explain
- Use the projected population data in column 4 of the Data Table
for 1995–2010 to calculate the population doubling time for these countries: your
country, Canada, Chile, Finland, India, Zambia.
- Assume that your country has an average annual population growth rate of 1.8%. It will
take 39 years for your country’s population to double. What changes will your country
need to make to deal with this growth in population? Consider such issues as housing,
health care, food supplies, transportation, employment, education, and the environment. Do
you think your country presently has the resources to handle this rate of population
growth? Why or why not?
7. What consequences might a declining population growth rate have on a country’s
economy and environment?
Answers
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