An average of 250 babies are born every minute in the world, which means more than 130 million new people every year. No wonder the population, now a whopping 8 billion, has more than tripled since the mid-20th century.
Take a look at this Visual Capitalist infographic, based on UN data for December 2022 and forecasts from the French Institute for Demographic Studies (INED), to show the difference in the rise and fall of the world’s population by 2050.
Countries with the most population: 2022 VS 2050
Asian countries India and China have topped the rankings of the most populous countries in the world for hundreds of years. China tops this list, but India is expected to surpass it before the end of 2023, eventually reaching 1.67 billion people in 2050.
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The US, Nigeria, Pakistan and Indonesia are the next most populous countries in 2022 and are expected to hold these places until 2050. However, in order to overtake the first two leaders, these countries will have to go a long way, since even their combined population does not reach half of the total number of people living in India and China.
Nigeria’s population is estimated to grow to 375 million by 2050, nearly the size of the United States. In 2022, the population of the African country was only about 219 million. The expected increase in numbers is due to high birth rates, a booming economy and consequent migration from the countryside to the city.
Countries with declining population
While many countries will experience population growth over the next three decades, other countries such as China are expected to experience the opposite.
The population of a number of countries in the world is expected to decline over the next 30 years. And the main reason for this: a very low birth rate.
South Korea, which has the world’s lowest birth rate, is expected to see a sharp drop in its population of almost 12%, dropping to 46 million by 2050.
Such a change in global demographic trends could create problems for economies around the world, such as labor shortages, an aging population, and an increased financial burden on younger generations.
The world population has grown to 8 billion, and demographic pessimists are predicting mass starvation and an eco-catastrophe – why there is no need to panic
