UN: Iran among the world's 10 most populous countries with low fertility rates
In its latest report on world population growth, the United Nations says that the number of inhabitants on Earth will reach 9.8 billion by 2050. In this report, Iran is among the 10 most populous countries in the world with low fertility rates, along with China, Germany, Japan, and the United States.
The world's population will grow from 7.6 billion this year to 9.8 billion in 2050, with India, Pakistan and seven other countries set to be the main drivers of this population increase, according to the United Nations.
India, Nigeria, Congo, Pakistan, Ethiopia, Tanzania, the United States, Uganda and Indonesia are at the top of the list of countries that will contribute to population growth over the next three decades, according to new United Nations estimates. India will replace China as the world's most populous country within the next seven years.
Iran, China, Brazil, the United States, Russia, Japan, Vietnam, Germany, Thailand and the United Kingdom are also among the world's most populous countries with low fertility rates. This means that the increase in the younger generation is less than the level needed to replace the older generation. Estimates show that 2.1 children per mother are needed to replace the necessary number. This means that 21 children must be born for every 10 mothers. The United Nations report indicates that more and more countries in the world are falling below the required level.
The results of a survey in January 2015 showed that issues such as “significant changes in the form and characteristics of the family” over the past half century, “the transition from extended to nuclear families” or “changing gender roles of men and women” and “decreasing fertility rates in Iran” have been quite noticeable over the past three decades. Also, the reluctance to have children in a city like Tehran was 1.5 times higher among men than women.
The UN report says that between 2010 and 2015, 47 of the world's least developed countries had more than 4.3 births per mother. As a result, the populations of 26 African countries will at least double their current populations by 2050. Nigeria is the world's fastest-growing country, and by that time it will have a population larger than the United States.
But another issue that is important in this report is the disproportionate increase in population in poor and less developed countries and concerns about food and drink sources for this huge population in the coming years.
At the same time, populations in developed countries are purposefully declining, and replacement rates are also declining. The United Nations says that immigration and refugee flows, especially to Europe, are helping to mitigate some of the population decline in these regions, although it will still not stop the overall decline.
Source: Radio Farda
