India is the most populated country in the World with highest young population - 1.4 Billion opportunities

India is the most populated country in the World with highest young population - 1.4 Billion opportunities

India is now the most populous country in the world, having overtaken China in population, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) said in its State of World Population (SOWP) report, ‘8 Billion Lives, Infinite Possibilities’, released on April 19. In November 2022, the UN had announced that the world’s population had crossed the 8 billion mark.

What are the highlights of the report?

The UNFPA has said the population of the world is 8,045 million, of which the largest share (65%) is of people between the ages of 15 and 64 years, followed by those in the 10-24 years group (24%). 10 percent of the population is above 65 years of age.

According to the UN’s 2022 report, the world’s two most populous regions are Eastern and South-Eastern Asia, with 2.3 billion people, representing 29 per cent of the global population; and Central and Southern Asia, with 2.1 billion (26 per cent). China and India accounted for the largest populations in these regions, with more than 1.4 billion each in 2022.

Earlier UN reports had said that the population growth in South Asia will begin to decline before 2100. The latest UN projections suggest that the global population could grow to around 8.5 billion in 2030, 9.7 billion in 2050 and 10.4 billion in 2100.

More than half of the projected increase in global population up to 2050 will be concentrated in eight countries — the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and the United Republic of Tanzania. Countries of sub-Saharan Africa are expected to continue growing through 2100 and to contribute more than half of the global population increase anticipated through 2050.

The 2023 report has said that while numbers will continue to grow for several decades, latest projections suggest that the rate of global population growth has fallen, and has been at less than 1 per cent since 2020.

This is largely due to declining fertility; around two thirds of people live in a country or area with a total fertility rate at or below 2.1 children per woman (widely considered the “replacement fertility” rate, also called “zero-growth fertility” rate). In 1950 the global fertility rate stood at 5.

In 2021, most births worldwide occurred in the two most populous regions—Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.

According to the report, 68 per cent of India’s total population is between the ages of 15 and 64 years, which is considered the working population of a country. About 25 per cent is between 0-14 years; 18 per cent between 10 and 19 years, 26 percent between 10 and 24 years, and 7 per cent above 65 years.

India’s population is expected to grow for the next three decades after which it will begin declining.

As the country with the largest youth cohort, its 254 million youth (15-24 years) can be a source of innovation, new thinking and lasting solutions. The trajectory can leapfrog forward if women and girls, in particular, are equipped with equal educational and skill-building opportunities, access to technology and digital innovations, and most importantly with information and power to fully exercise their reproductive rights and choices.

“As the world reaches 8 billion people, we at UNFPA see India’s 1.4 billion people as 1.4 billion opportunities,” said Andrea Wojnar, the representative for United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) India and the country director for Bhutan.

As much as 68% of India’s population belongs to the 15-64 years category, and 26% in the 10-24 years group, making India one of the youngest countries in the world.

Central and Southern Asia is expected to become the most populous region in the world by 2037.

Life expectancy for men in India is the same as the global life expectancy of 71 years, while it is marginally lower for women at 74 years.