The world is expected to hit the peak global number of births in 2014 and then decline, according to projections from the United Nations (UN) Population Division. After an expected worldwide births of 139 million, the UN reports that the birth rate will slightly decline to approximately 135 million and stay relatively stagnant until a projected increase in 2040. By the end of the 21st century, the UN predicts the worldwide population will continually increase until it peaks at nearly 11 billion, even with a steady birth rate. This is due to expectations that the death rate will also slow and keep in balance with the number of births.
More about global birth trends:
- Africa has an average birth rate of over five children per woman, and the continent’s population is projected to increase two-fold from 2013 through 2050.
- The average number of births is 2.5 per every woman of child bearing age throughout the world.
- Europe is among the only regions in the world expected to have a sharp decline in population, from 740 million in 2014 to a projected 726 million in 2050, even as the rest of the world’s population increases.
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More Info: un.org
Discussion Comments
In relation to the first bullet point, does anyone know why those in Africa have such a high birth rate? Maybe they have so many kids because their traditions are a lot more different than ours. After all, some men from third world countries (Africa in this case) are known to have many wives.
@Viranty - You do bring up a good point when you mentioned children being born out of wedlock, which can definitely be a problem. When you're already planning on having a baby (as husband and wife), the occupancy and finance issues aren't a problem. People who have a baby when they're married already know the trials that await, and usually have jobs for support.
However, when you have kids out of wedlock, not only are you unprepared, but you may even have to give up the baby for adoption, especially if there's no room in the house. It may not seem like a problem at first, but it's easy to see how it can become one if so many people do it.
After reading this article, it's definitely not hard to see how birth rates can become a problem. Though the world is large enough for billions to fit, there's still the issue of space and occupancy. With so many babies being born, it becomes more and more taxing to find homes for them. This is especially the case if they're born in third world countries or out of wedlock.
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