The world reaches 8 billion inhabitants

Tremendous advances in public health that have reduced the risk of death and increased life expectancy have allowed the world to reach 8 billion people sometime this year. However, along with this progress, inequality has grown, and crises and conflicts have multiplied, the UN observed on Tuesday, November 15, the symbolic date chosen to mark the population milestone.

The Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, considered that the number is a wake-up call for humanity to look beyond the numbers and fulfill its shared responsibility to protect people and the planet, starting with the most vulnerable.

“Unless we overcome the enormous gap between the rich and the poor, we are preparing ourselves for a world of 8 billion inhabitants full of tensions, mistrust, crises and conflicts”, warned António Guterres in his reflections for the occasion.

Guterres called for changing the course through solidarity that promotes sustainable development and guarantees the enjoyment of human rights without leaving anyone behind. This will usher in a world in which 8 billion people can prosper.

Population growth and poverty

Along the same lines, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) noted that while reaching 8 billion illustrates a success story for humanity, it also raises concerns about the links between population growth, poverty , climate change and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Population Fund explained that rapid population growth makes it difficult to eradicate poverty, fight hunger and malnutrition, and increase the coverage of health and education systems.

“On the other hand, meeting the Goals, especially those related to health, education and gender equality, would help to slow down the growth of the world population,” he said.

Population and climate change

Referring to the relationship between population, climate change and environmental degradation, the Fund stressed that although slower population growth would help mitigate it, it will not be enough as long as greenhouse gas emissions are not reduced.

At this point, he recalled that the countries with the highest rates of consumption and emissions are those where population growth is already slow or even negative, while most of the world population growth occurs in the poorest countries, which have rates emissions significantly lower, but suffer disproportionately from the effects of climate change.

The UN has urged for years to decouple economic activity from excessive dependence on energy from fossil fuels, advocating for a transition to clean and renewable energy sources, and for support so that less developed countries can also do this change.

Different demographic trends

Projections indicate that the world population will continue to grow to reach 10.4 billion in the 2080s, showing that the overall rate of growth is slowing. Countries record different demographic trends ranging from growth to decline.

Currently, two thirds of the world’s population lives in an environment of low fertility, with less than 2.1 births per woman. Instead, population growth is increasingly concentrated among the world’s poorest countries, most of them in sub-Saharan Africa.

In this sense, the Population Fund stressed that the international community must ensure that all countries have the capacity to provide a good quality of life to all their inhabitants, regardless of whether their population grows or decreases.

Mothers in Mozambique take their babies to be vaccinated against polio. (Photo: © UNICEF / Claudio Fauvrelle)

Adapt policies

The agency’s executive director, Natalia Kanem, stressed that although 8 billion marks a before and after, focusing only on numbers distracts from the world’s true challenge: that progress be equitable and sustainable. And for this, she continued, policies must be adapted according to the country.

In order to design solutions to inequality, greater investment is needed from States and donor governments in policies and programs aimed at making the world more secure, sustainable and inclusive.

“We cannot rely on one-size-fits-all solutions in a world where the average age is 41 in Europe compared to 17 in sub-Saharan Africa. To be successful, all population policies must be centered around reproductive rights, invest in people and the planet, and be based on solid data,” Kanem said.

some interesting facts

-The world population took about 12 years to go from 7 billion to 8 billion, but the next 1 billion is expected to take about 14.5 years (2037), reflecting the slowdown in global growth.

-The world population is expected to reach a peak of about 10.4 billion people during the 2080s and to remain at that level until 2100.

-About 70% of the added population of 7 to 8 billion is in low and lower-middle income countries. By the time the population increases from the current 8 billion to 9 billion, it is estimated that these two groups of countries will account for more than 90% of world growth.

-By 2050, the global increase in the population under 65 years of age will occur entirely in low- and lower-middle-income countries, since population growth in high- and upper-middle-income countries will only occur among those over 65 years of age. (Font: UN News)