Population

• Population growth rate

  The average annual change of the population size during a set period of time, usually a year

  
• Carrying capacity

  The number of people that an area can support
• Overpopulation

  When there are more people in an area than can be supported by its resources and technology
• Underpopulation

  When there are more resources available than the population can use effectively
• Consequences of overpopulation

  • Increased levels of pollution
  • Increased crime rates
  • Increased unemployment or underemployment
  • Increased levels of food and water shortages
  • Increased pressure on services such as hospitals and schools
• Consequences of underpopulation

  • Fewer people pay taxes which can lead to higher taxes
  • Underused resources, which can lead to waste
  • A shortage of workers
  • Lower levels of exports and production which affects the wealth of an area
  • Fewer customers for goods and services
• Optimum population

  When there is a balance between the number of people and the resources/technology available
• Nigeria's population is over 217 million and is forecast to reach 400 million by 2050 and 1 billion by 2100
• Lagos is predicted to become the world's largest city by 2100
• 30% of the population live in poverty earning less than $515 a year
• The urban population has increased from 18% in 1960 to almost 53% in 2021
• Nigeria is experiencing rapid population growth at 2.5%
• Nigeria's population density is 226 people per km2
• In Lagos, the population density reaches 6871 people per km2
• Resources in Nigeria

  • Oil
  • Gas
  • Iron ore
  • Coal
  • Zinc
  • Arable land
• The top 5 richest Nigerians own and control more resources than the remaining 95% combined
• Causes of overpopulation in Nigeria

  • High birth and fertility rates
  • Early age of marriage
  • Larger families associated with higher social status
  • High infant mortality rates
  • Religious beliefs
  • Lack of education about family planning and contraception
  • Decreasing death rate
• Impacts of overpopulation in Nigeria

  • Lack of fresh water
  • Increased levels of water, air and land pollution
  • Increased cultivation of land for food leading to soil erosion and desertification
  • Increased pressure on already poor services such as health and education
  • Higher crime rates
  • Development of informal settlements around cities
• Canada has a population of 38.5 million
• Canada has a population density of 4 people per km2
• The rate of natural increase for Canada is 2.42 per 1000
• Most of the net population increase is the result of immigration
• Resources in Canada

  • Fishing
  • Zinc
  • Uranium
  • Timber
  • Gas
  • Coal
  • Oil
  • Gold
  • Nickel
  • Lead
  • Aluminium
  • Wheat
• Causes of underpopulation in Canada

  • Low birth rate
  • Low fertility rate
  • Increased levels of family planning and access to contraceptives
  • Higher levels of education
  • Many remote and difficult to access areas
• Impacts of underpopulation in Canada

  • Shortages of workers
  • Low rates of unemployment
  • Ageing population
  • Fewer workers to pay taxes
  • Increased healthcare and social costs
  • Underexploited resources
  • Lack of services due to low demand
• Rates

  Decrease as a result of improved diets, better healthcare, lower infant mortality and increased access to clean water
• Stage 3

  1. Total population continues to increase but the rate of growth begins to slow

  2. Birth rate begins to fall rapidly due to increased birth control, family planning, increased cost of raising children and low infant mortality rate

  3. Death rate still decreasing but at a slower rate as improvements in medicine, hygiene, diet and water quality continue
• Stage 4

  1. Total population is high and is increasing slowly

  2. Birth rate is low and fluctuating due to accessible birth control and the choice of having fewer children as well as delaying the age women start to have children

  3. Death rate is low and fluctuates
• Stage 5

  1. Total population starts to slowly decline as the death rate exceeds the birth rate

  2. Birth rate is low and slowly decreasing

  3. Death rate is low and fluctuates
• Birth rates are still high in many LEDCs
• Reasons for high birth rates in LEDCs

  • Lack of/don't use/cannot afford contraception
  • Lack of education about contraception/about problems of large families
  • Children needed for work/to earn money/for farming; needed to look after elderly/no pensions
  • Children needed to do household chores or example – fetching wood/water, cleaning the house, and looking after younger children
  • Traditional views about large families/polygamy/families want a male child
  • Religious/cultural views on contraception/abortion/family size
  • High infant mortality/they have more babies so some will survive
  • Early marriages/teenage pregnancy
  • Lack of emancipation for women/women don't have careers/lack of education for women
  • No access to sexual (family) health clinics including abortion, etc.
• Population growth rates are currently highest in LEDCs such as Niger, Mali and Zambia
• Population growth rates are lowest in MEDCs
• In some MEDCs such as Italy and Japan, the population is decreasing as the number of deaths is higher than the number of births
• Factors affecting population change

  • Fertility
  • Mortality
  • Migration
• Fertility

  As well as the birth rate, fertility can also be measured by the fertility rate
• Factors affecting fertility

  • Social
  • Economic
  • Political
• Social factors affecting fertility

  Infant mortality rate - when this is high the fertility rate also tends to be high as women have more children to ensure some survive to adulthood<|>Education - higher levels of education lead to lower fertility rates as more women are in formal employment<|>Religion - religious beliefs can influence how many children a woman has
• Economic factors affecting fertility

  Cost of having children - in MEDCs the cost of raising children may reduce the number of children a woman has<|>Lack of pensions - in LEDCs children are needed to care for elderly parents as there are no pensions. This increases the fertility rate<|>Contribution to family income - in LEDCs children often work to contribute to family income so more children are needed, increasing the fertility rate
• Political factors affecting fertility

  Pronatalist policies encourage women to have children and increase the fertility rate<|>Anti-natalist policies encourage women to have fewer children which decreases the fertility rate<|>Healthcare - the availability of contraception and family planning