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World population growth in worrying decline

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – A new study forecasts that the current downward trend of population growth will continue and will decline dramatically, such that in 80 years the populations of countries like Spain and Japan may be reduced by half, Live Action reports.

Published by the Lancet on July 14, the study offers a forecasting analysis of “fertility, mortality, migration and population scenarios for 195 countries and territories.” The study predicts that population growth in almost all countries will keep falling through the end of the century. The world’s population is expected to peak at 9.7 billion in around 2064, and then decline to around 8.8 billion by 2100, Live Action said.

Researchers at the University of Washington have said that in 1950 women were having an average of 4.7 children during their lifetime. This figure had declined to 2.4 by 2017 and is expected to be lower than 1.7 by 2100, Live Action reports.

Live-Action notes that abortion activists and others have cited the need for population control because of fears of global overcrowding and limited resources. However, scientists have warned of devastating consequences of population decline. Researcher Christopher Murray told Live Action that the current trend would result in the world having more old people than young people, bringing with it “all the uniformly negative consequences of an inverted age structure.”

Various nations, including Italy, Hungary, and Singapore have been aware of their worryingly low birth rates for some time, and families are being offered incentives such as “baby bonus” financial amounts and extra holidays to have more children.

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