YOUR BUSINESS IS OUR BUSINESS: Population explosion: blame China, India, US

Yesterday, July 11, was ‘World Population Day’ (WPD), with this year’s theme being ‘Family Planning is a Human Right!’

WPD focuses attention on the urgency and importance of population issues – marked by activities and events that draw attention to the need to work together on population growth and related issues.

July 11, 1987 was designated ‘The Day of Five Billion.’ It was on that day when the world population reached 5 billion, up from 4 only 13 years earlier!

In historical perspective, the world’s ‘living’ population totaled some 7.6bn in May 2018, up from 7.342bn on September 30, 2016 – and from a relatively measly 400 million around 1,000CE!

It took 804 years for the population to reach one billion by 1804CE. Then, it only needed 156 years to add another 2 billion – bringing the population to three billion in 1960…

In the next 40 years, some three billion ‘earthlings’ were born, increasing the ‘living’ to six billion by year-2000.

Add another billion in the next 16 years – and the world population exceeded seven-billion in 2016, reaching 7.6 billion in May 2018… And still counting!

[To ‘help with the counting,’ google world-population/?>].

According to the ‘World Population Clock,’ Planet Earth was home to 7,342,686,578 humans-alive at 17:13hours UTC (Universal Time Coordinated) on September 30, 2016 – and was projected to reach 7,483,223,649 this year.

In fact, the population had reached 7,632,870,400 head by 14.20hours on July 1, 2018 – and still counting…!

China was home to the largest segment of the global population: 1,376,745,728 persons. [population.php?pc=world>].

Second most populated was India (1,296,834,048 souls), followed by the US (331,026,400); Indonesia (262,936,096); Brazil (218,622,302); Pakistan (207,862,512); Nigeria (195,875,237); Bangladesh (177,330,992); Russia (133,795,056); Japan (126,168,160); … Tanzania: 54.2 million, as per NBS).

When the population reached 5-billion on July 11, 1987, it discombobulated stakeholders in the planet’s welfare. Stakeholders the likes of the UN Development Programme, the UN Fund for Population Activities and others were disconcerted.

So, they created ‘World Population Day’ on the back of ‘The Day of Five Billion’ – perhaps little knowing that there’d just as soon be Days of ‘Six Billion, Seven Billion’ – and counting.

It took 800-plus years in early Christendom to procreate 600 million humans, thereby increasing the population from 400 million in year-1,000CE to a billion in 1804CE.

In stark contrast, it took only 214 years to increase the population from a billion in year-1804 to 7.6bn in May 2018!

Clearly, population growth was at a snail’s pace – for lack of a better phraseology – in the early Christian era. Then it gained momentum post-1000CE, partly on account of “unwanted or accidental pregnancies, estimated to contribute about 30 per cent of the population growth” today.

Whew!

We’re also told that “world population growth is slowing down; but it’ll take about 100 years before it stops!”

Really…?

What’ll happen next if and when population growth stops – but the Grim Reaper, Death, continues to take its toll right, left and centre?

What will happen then? I ask you… Yes: YOU! Cheers…