World Population Day

By the end of the century, the world’s population might be as high as 17 billion or as low as 7 billion, according to the most recent UN estimates. 2015: There are about 1.8 billion young people between the ages of 10 and 24 – the largest youth population ever. Many of them are concentrated in developing countries. In fact, in the world’s 48 least developed countries, children or adolescents make up a majority of the population.

As the world population edged to 7 billion people in 2011 (up from 2.5 billion in 1950), it has had profound implications for development. A world of 7 billion is both a challenge and an opportunity with implications on sustainability, urbanization, access to health services and youth empowerment. As of March 2016, it was estimated at 7.4 billion.

In 1989, in its decision 89/46, the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme recommended that, in order to focus attention on the urgency and importance of population issues in the context of overall development plans and programmes and the need to find solutions for these issues, 11 July should be observed by the international community as World Population Day. The General Assembly has asked the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) to undertake activities aimed at building better awareness of population issues, including their relation to environment and development issues and World Population Day.

The world is seeing a record number of people displaced by crises – some 60 million according to the latest UN figures. UNFPA works in emergency settings around the globe to respond to the rights and needs of women and girls, helping them maintain their dignity, securing their safety, and restoring their access to sexual and reproductive health care.

Source: un.org | unfpa.org