*South, Southeast Asia will concede positions as most populated regions of the world to Sub-Saharan Africa
*Populations in 23 countries, including Japan, Spain and Italy, to decline by more than half
*34 countries, including China, to see a drop of more than 25%
Nigeria has been projected to be a dominant global power within 80yrs while populations in 23 countries, including Japan, Spain and Italy, will decline by more than half, a report has predicted.
According to a new report in medical journal, The Lancet, global population is likely to shrink after the middle of this century, triggering shifts in economic power.
It predicted that there will be around 9.7 billion people on the planet by 2064.That number will however decrease to 8.8 billion by the year 2100.
The improvement to modern contraceptive methods as well as the increasingly widespread education of women could be the impetus for this projected decline, the report stated.
It noted that populations will not be sustained at current levels without a more liberal immigration approach.
It also prognosticated that populations in 23 countries, including Japan, Spain and Italy, will decline by more than half, while another 34 countries, including China, were projected to see a drop of more than 25 per cent.
According to the report published by Sky, Nigeria, which currently has the seventh-highest population in the world, will rocket up to second place by 2100, while the Japanese population will plummet from the 10th to 38th.
Niger’s population is forecast to grow by 765% by 2100, Chad’s by 710%, South Sudan’s by 594% and Mali’s by 321%.
It predicted that Latvia will see the biggest fall in population, by 78 per cent, with El Salvador’s population forecast to drop by 77 per cent. As a result of this, South and Southeast Asia will concede their positions as the most populated regions of the world to Sub-Saharan Africa, which is projected to see an explosion in growth in the middle of the century, according to the forecast.
The report predicted that Central Europe would move to the bottom of the table, with North America overtaking the region, while India, which currently has the second-highest population in the world, will rise to the number one spot by the year 2100, despite a fall in population of around 300 million people.
According to the report, China will fall from top to third place in the table, with its population set to fall by more than 25 per cent.
The Lancet also forecast that African nations will lead in total population growth as sub-Saharan Africa will see growth of more than three times its current population, due to falling death rates in the region and the rising number of women reaching child-bearing age.
A key highlight of the report is the projected major shift in the way age is distributed throughout the global population.
The report noted that across the world, over-80s were set to outnumber under-fives by a factor of two-to-one by 2100, marking a shift in the working age population.
It said countries like China, Spain, the UK and Germany were all expected to see a dramatic drop in the size of their workforce, resulting in a slowing of economic growth that will open the way for African and Arab countries to take the lead economically.
Quoting the Editor-in-Chief of The Lancet, Dr Richard Horton, it said: “This important research charts a future we need to be planning for urgently.
“It offers a vision for radical shifts in geopolitical power, challenges myths about immigration, and underlines the importance of protecting and strengthening the sexual and reproductive rights of women. The 21st century will see a revolution in the story of our human civilisation.
“Africa and the Arab World will shape our future, while Europe and Asia will recede in their influence. By the end of the century, the world will be multipolar, with India, Nigeria, China, and the US the dominant powers.
“This will truly be a new world, one we should be preparing for today.”
