World Population Hits 8 Billion, Creating Many Challenges
2022-11-16
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1A United Nations report projects the world's population hit an estimated 8 billion people on Tuesday.
2Much of the growth comes from developing nations in Africa.
3The U.N.'s Day of 8 Billion on Tuesday is more representative than exact, officials note.
4The report was released this summer and included other predictions, as well.
5It projected the world's population will reach around 8.5 billion in 2030, 9.7 billion in 2050, and 10.4 billion in 2100.
6The report found that the population in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa is predicted to double between 2022 and 2050.
7Such a population increase, the report said, will put "additional pressure on already strained resources and challenging polices aimed at reducing poverty and inequalities."
8In Nigeria, resources are already stretched to the limit.
9More than 15 million people in the country's biggest city, Lagos, compete for everything from electricity to light their homes to seats on crowded buses.
10The U.N. says that over the next 30 years, Nigeria's population is expected to increase from 216 million to 375 million.
11That would make Nigeria the fourth-most populous country in the world after India, China, and the United States.
12"We are already overstretching what we have - the housing, roads, the hospitals, schools. Everything is overstretched," said Gyang Dalyop.
13 He advises in city planning and development in Nigeria.
14Increasing populations threaten to leave behind even more people in developing countries.
15Governments will struggle to provide enough classrooms and jobs for a quickly growing number of young people.
16And food insecurities will become an even more urgent problem.
17Nigeria is among eight countries the U.N. says will account for more than half the world's population growth between now and 2050.
18Other African countries included in that group are Congo, Ethiopia and Tanzania.
19The other countries with the fastest growing populations are Egypt, Pakistan, the Philippines and India.
20India is set to overtake China as the world's most populous nation next year.
21Fast population growth also means more people competing for water resources and food, as climate change increasingly affects crop production.
22"There is also a greater pressure on the environment, increasing the challenges to food security that is also compounded by climate change," said Dr. Srinath Reddy.
23He is president of the Public Health Foundation of India.
24Still, experts say the bigger threat to the environment is consumption, which is highest in developed countries not undergoing big population increases.
25Consumption means the use of something, such as fuel.
26Poonam Muttreja is executive director of the Population Foundation of India.
27She said, "Over the past 25 years, the richest 10 percent of the global population has been responsible for more than half of all carbon emissions."
28The U.N. says the population in sub-Saharan Africa is growing at a rate of 2.5 percent each year.
29That is more than three times the world average.
30Women in sub-Saharan Africa on average have 4.6 births.
31That is two times the current world average of 2.3.
32The U.N. said that any effort to reduce family size now would come too late to effectively slow the 2050 growth projections.
33Even as populations increase in some countries, the U.N. says rates are expected to drop by one percent or more in 61 nations.
34The U.S. population is now around 333 million, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
35The population growth rate in 2021 was just 0.1 percent, the lowest since the country was founded.
36"Going forward, we're going to have slower growth - the question is, how slow?" said William Frey.
37He is an expert in human population changes at the Brookings Institution.
38"The real wild card for the U.S. and many other developed countries is immigration."
39Charles Kenny is a senior expert at the Center for Global Development in Washington.
40He said environmental concerns surrounding the 8 billion estimate should bring attention to consumption, especially in developed countries.
41He said, "Population is not the problem, the way we consume is the problem."
42I'm Jill Robbins.
1A United Nations report projects the world's population hit an estimated 8 billion people on Tuesday. Much of the growth comes from developing nations in Africa. 2The U.N.'s Day of 8 Billion on Tuesday is more representative than exact, officials note. 3The report was released this summer and included other predictions, as well. It projected the world's population will reach around 8.5 billion in 2030, 9.7 billion in 2050, and 10.4 billion in 2100. 4The report found that the population in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa is predicted to double between 2022 and 2050. Such a population increase, the report said, will put "additional pressure on already strained resources and challenging polices aimed at reducing poverty and inequalities." 5In Nigeria, resources are already stretched to the limit. More than 15 million people in the country's biggest city, Lagos, compete for everything from electricity to light their homes to seats on crowded buses. 6The U.N. says that over the next 30 years, Nigeria's population is expected to increase from 216 million to 375 million. That would make Nigeria the fourth-most populous country in the world after India, China, and the United States. 7"We are already overstretching what we have - the housing, roads, the hospitals, schools. Everything is overstretched," said Gyang Dalyop. He advises in city planning and development in Nigeria. 8Increasing populations threaten to leave behind even more people in developing countries. Governments will struggle to provide enough classrooms and jobs for a quickly growing number of young people. And food insecurities will become an even more urgent problem. 9Nigeria is among eight countries the U.N. says will account for more than half the world's population growth between now and 2050. Other African countries included in that group are Congo, Ethiopia and Tanzania. 10The other countries with the fastest growing populations are Egypt, Pakistan, the Philippines and India. India is set to overtake China as the world's most populous nation next year. 11Fast population growth also means more people competing for water resources and food, as climate change increasingly affects crop production. 12"There is also a greater pressure on the environment, increasing the challenges to food security that is also compounded by climate change," said Dr. Srinath Reddy. He is president of the Public Health Foundation of India. 13Still, experts say the bigger threat to the environment is consumption, which is highest in developed countries not undergoing big population increases. Consumption means the use of something, such as fuel. 14Poonam Muttreja is executive director of the Population Foundation of India. She said, "Over the past 25 years, the richest 10 percent of the global population has been responsible for more than half of all carbon emissions." 15Growing Africa 16The U.N. says the population in sub-Saharan Africa is growing at a rate of 2.5 percent each year. That is more than three times the world average. Women in sub-Saharan Africa on average have 4.6 births. That is two times the current world average of 2.3. 17The U.N. said that any effort to reduce family size now would come too late to effectively slow the 2050 growth projections. 18Slowing growth in other parts of the world 19Even as populations increase in some countries, the U.N. says rates are expected to drop by one percent or more in 61 nations. 20The U.S. population is now around 333 million, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The population growth rate in 2021 was just 0.1 percent, the lowest since the country was founded. 21"Going forward, we're going to have slower growth - the question is, how slow?" said William Frey. He is an expert in human population changes at the Brookings Institution. "The real wild card for the U.S. and many other developed countries is immigration." 22Consumption 23Charles Kenny is a senior expert at the Center for Global Development in Washington. He said environmental concerns surrounding the 8 billion estimate should bring attention to consumption, especially in developed countries. 24He said, "Population is not the problem, the way we consume is the problem." 25I'm Jill Robbins. 26Dan Ikpoyi and Chinedu Asadu reported this story for The Associated Press. Gregory Stachel adapted it for VOA Learning English. 27________________________________________________________________________ 28Words in This Story 29strained - adj. feeling or showing the effect of too much work, use, or effort 30challenge - v. to test the ability, skill, or strength of (someone or something 31poverty - n. the state of being poor 32consumption - n. the amount of something that someone uses, eats or drinks 33global - adj. involving the entire world 34emissions - n. the act of producing or sending out something (such as energy or gas) from a source 35wild card - n. a person or thing that could affect a situation in a way that cannot be predicted: an unknown or unpredictable factor 36________________________________________________________________________ 37What do you think of growing populations? 38We want to hear from you. We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 39Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.