population

• consequences of a youthful population in Sub-Saharan Africa

  • increased pressure on working population to provide for more than half the population
  • expensive to provide schools and teachers
  • need to spend money on hospitals, doctors to give medical care for children
  • pressure on farmers to grow enough food, so instensively farmed land makes the soil poor
  • not enough housing for everyone so people build makeshift houses with no amenities
  • schools and hospitals are overcrowded
• solutions to a youthful population

  • limiting family size, eg. One Child Policy in China
  • more education on the reduction of births, family planning clinics
  • education of girls, reduces birth rates
  • more opportunities for abortion and sterilisation
  • incentives to limit family size, eg. free healthcare or better housing
  • high yielding crops, fertilisers and irrigation to improve farming and crop yields
• effects of an ageing population

  • more demand for services, eg. Meals on Wheels
  • need for more sheltered housing and old people homes
  • increased strain on public transport
  • cost of healthcare rises
  • less working age people to pay taxes
  • schools may close and teachers lose jobs
  • retirement/pension age may rise
• strategies to solve problems with ageing population

  • more paternity leave to encourage people to have babies
  • more maternity leave
  • raise retirement age
  • encourage more female workers
  • encourage immigration
  • encourage more private pensions
• methods of collecting data

  census: held every 10 years, Britain uses the de facto method, which records where people live on the day of census, legally required, finds social, economic and cultural background, for the gov. to know how to spend money, plan for future

  civil registration: records can be kept of vital events (marriage, birth, death), without these it's impossible to get passports, reliable

  Scottish Household Survey: continuous, voluntary, interviewer-administrated, sample of population - 10,000 /yr

  border control: information gathered on people entering and leaving the UK
• local impacts of the war in Syria

  • millions of people in Syria have had to escape and go somewhere safer
  • many have died
  • damage to infrastructure, health and industry, eg. in Damascus
  • many of those that remain have had to seek safety in countryside
  • children can't go to school because of damage or no teachers
  • damage of historical sites, eg. Palmyra
  • collapse of local economy, value of Syrian trade in 2010: $2.7b, 2014: $0.7b
• regional and global impact of the war in Syria

  • all 6 UNESCO World Heritage sites in Syria have been damaged
  • political impact has damaged the West's relationship with the Arab world, Russia and China
  • unstable governments may be more likely to fear the rise of terrorist organisations
  • global unrest can add uncertainty about trade and markets
  • many refugees fled to Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq
  • refugees have tried to get to Europe, some want to start a new life here
• immigrant


  someone who enters a country
• emmigrant


  someone who is leaving a country
• refugee


  someone who is forced to leave their country
• push factors

  • loss of farm land due to land reform or growing population
  • mechanisation leading to agriculture job loss
  • low wages from agricultural jobs
  • low standard of living
  • poor sanitation
  • poor rural services
  • drought leading to crop loss
  • decreasing productivity of agriculture land
• pull factors


  • job opportunities
  • better education
  • better health care, doctors and hospitals
  • higher wages
  • extended family already there
  • possibility of better housing
  • access to amenities
• advantages to origin country (Mexico)

  • birth rates decreases
  • provision of healthcare may improve as there is less demand on social services
  • 1/10 Mexican families rely upon remittances from migrant workers in the US
  • migrant workers who return may bring skills and benefit their area
  • unemployment rate will fall
• disadvantages to origin country (Mexico)

  • economically active people leave for better pay, eg. doctors and teachers. < brain drain
  • many families are divided as typical migrants are adult males
  • Mexico can lose money from the economy
  • 3/400 Mexicans die each year crossing the border
  • families can become too dependent on the remittances from migrant workers
• advantages to host country (USA)

  • Mexicans are a cheap source of labour who will work for below min wage
  • the Sunbelt states CA, AZ, TX and NM utilise cheaper labour and increase profits
  • migrants will do the jobs which Americans are unwilling to do, eg. 3D (dangerous, dirty, difficult)
  • seasonal jobs are easily fill, like picking fruit
  • Mexicans bring cultural advantages
  • educated professionals bring quality to business
• disadvantages to host country (USA)

  • approx. 1/4 Mexicans in the US are illegal so don't pay tax and spend lots
  • more people = extra pressure on services, they seek healthcare (don't pay) and education which comes at a cost to tax payers
  • the gov. spends $6.7b per year to co-ordinate border controls
  • American culture is becoming diluted. 34% of Californians are Mexican, more use of spanglish
  • 30% of prisoners are illegal immigrants
  • rise in document forgery, eg. social security cards and green cards