Is unlimited population growth related to poverty? This is a question
that comes to mind when you look at the global birth rate statistic. We
obtained our data from the Central Intelligence Agencies ‘s (CIA)
Factbook website. Suprised? The United States spy agency not only does
its obvious covert work but conducts research and publishes a lot of its
findings on its website.
Its table for the top 20 countries with
highest birth rate (which is calculated by comparing the average annual
number of births during a year per 1,000 persons in the population at
midyear) shows 19 African countries in the list with Afghanistan the
only non-African country.
Considering the widespread level of
poverty in these country, it is easy to associate high birth rate with
high rate of poverty in these countries. Their governments might need to
take steps to educate their populations of managing birth of children
and increasing their productivity.
You can see Nigeria
with a birth rate of 36.90 per 1000. Do you think the Nigerian
government and other African governments should focus on trying birth
control? Let us know what you think.
See the Table next: