In the Cook Islands in 2024, the population decreased by about 2.24 percent compared to the previous year, making it the country with the highest population decline rate in 2024. Of the 20 countries with the highest rate of population decline, the majority are island nations, where emigration rates are high (especially to Australia, New Zealand, and the United States), or they are located in Eastern Europe, which suffers from a combination of high emigration rates and low birth rates.

The European countries which saw the greatest population growth in 2025 were Gibraltar, Kosovo and Iceland. Overall, Europe's population declined by 3.3 percent in 2025, with this varying by region from a 0.19 percent decline in northern Europe to 4.6 percent in southern Europe. All the countries which saw the largest declines in their population in 2025 were central and eastern European countries.

This statistic shows the 20 countries with the highest population growth rate in 2024. In SouthSudan, the population grew by about 4.65 percent compared to the previous year, making it the country with the highest population growth rate in 2024. The global population Today, the global population amounts to around 7 billion people, i.e. the total number of living humans on Earth. More than half of the global population is living in Asia, while one quarter of the global population resides in Africa. High fertility rates in Africa and Asia, a decline in the mortality rates and an increase in the median age of the world population all contribute to the global population growth. Statistics show that the global population is subject to increase by almost 4 billion people by 2100. The global population growth is a direct result of people living longer because of better living conditions and a healthier nutrition. Three out of five of the most populous countries in the world are located in Asia. Ultimately the highest population growth rate is also found there, the country with the highest population growth rate is Syria. This could be due to a low infant mortality rate in Syria or the ever -expanding tourism sector.

Between 2018 and 2023, the Maldives had the highest average annual population growth rate across the Asia-Pacific region, *** percent. In contrast, Taiwan's population experienced a negative growth of *** percent during this period.

In 2023, the natural growth rate of the population across China varied between 7.96 people per 1,000 inhabitants (per mille) in Tibet and -6.92 per mille in Heilongjiang province. The national total population growth rate turned negative in 2022 and ranged at -1.48 per mille in 2023. Regional disparities in population growth The natural growth rate is the difference between the birth rate and the death rate of a certain region. In China, natural population growth reached the highest values in the western regions of the country. These areas have a younger population and higher fertility rates. Although the natural growth rate does not include the direct effects of migration, migrants are often young people in their reproductive years, and their movement may therefore indirectly affect the birth rates of their home and host region. This is one of the reasons why Guangdong province, which received a lot of immigrants over the last decades, has a comparatively high population growth rate. At the same time, Jilin, Liaoning, and Heilongjiang province, all located in northeast China, suffer not only from low fertility, but also from emigration of young people searching for better jobs elsewhere. The impact of uneven population growth The current distribution of natural population growth rates across China is most likely to remain in the near future, while overall population decline is expected to accelerate. Regions with less favorable economic opportunities will lose their inhabitants faster. The western regions with their high fertility rates, however, have only small total populations, which limits their effect on China’s overall population size.

The average for 2022 based on 196 countries was 18.19 births per 1000 people. The highest value was in the Central African Republic: 45.42 births per 1000 people and the lowest value was in Hong Kong: 4.4 births per 1000 people. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The population of Europe was estimated to be 745 million in 2024, an increase of around 4 million when compared with 2012. Over 35 years between 1950 and 1985, the population of Europe grew by approximately 157.8 million. But 35 years after 1985 it was estimated to have only increased by around 38.7 million. Since the 1960s, population growth in Europe has fallen quite significantly and was even negative during the mid-1990s. While population growth has increased slightly since the low of -0.07 percent in 1998, the growth rate for 2020 was just 0.04 percent. Which European country has the biggest population? As of 2024, the population of Russia was estimated to be approximately 144.8 million and was by far Europe's largest country in terms of population, with Turkey being the second-largest at over 87 million. While these two countries both have territory in Europe, however, they are both only partially in Europe, with the majority of their landmasses being in Asia. In terms of countries wholly located on the European continent, Germany had the highest population at 84.5 million, and was followed by the United Kingdom and France at 69.1 million and 66.5 million respectively. Characteristics of Europe's population There are approximately 384.6 million females in Europe, compared with 359.5 million males, a difference of around 25 million. In 1950, however, the male population has grown faster than the female one, with the male population growing by 104.7 million, and the female one by 93.6 million. As of 2024, the single year of age with the highest population was 37, at 10.6 million, while in the same year there were estimated to be around 136 thousand people aged 100 or over.

In 2024, the average number of children born per 1,000 people in China ranged at ****. The birth rate has dropped considerably since 2016, and the number of births fell below the number of deaths in 2022 for the first time in decades, leading to a negative population growth rate. Recent development of the birth rate Similar to most East-Asian countries and territories, demographics in China today are characterized by a very low fertility rate. As low fertility in the long-term limits economic growth and leads to heavy strains on the pension and health systems, the Chinese government decided to support childbirth by gradually relaxing strict birth control measures, that had been in place for three decades. However, the effect of this policy change was considerably smaller than expected. The birth rate increased from **** births per 1,000 inhabitants in 2010 to ***** births in 2012 and remained on a higher level for a couple of years, but then dropped again to a new low in 2018. This illustrates that other factors constrain the number of births today. These factors are most probably similar to those experienced in other developed countries as well: women preferring career opportunities over maternity, high costs for bringing up children, and changed social norms, to name only the most important ones. Future demographic prospects Between 2020 and 2023, the birth rate in China dropped to formerly unknown lows, most probably influenced by the coronavirus pandemic. As all COVID-19 restrictions were lifted by the end of 2022, births figures showed a catch-up effect in 2024. However, the scope of the rebound might be limited. A population breakdown by five-year age groups indicates that the drop in the number of births is also related to a shrinking number of people with child-bearing age. The age groups between 15 and 29 years today are considerably smaller than those between 30 and 44, leaving less space for the birth rate to increase. This effect is exacerbated by a considerable gender gap within younger age groups in China, with the number of females being much lower than that of males.

According to latest figures, the Chinese population decreased by 1.39 million to around 1.408 billion people in 2024. After decades of rapid growth, China arrived at the turning point of its demographic development in 2022, which was earlier than expected. The annual population decrease is estimated to remain at moderate levels until around 2030 but to accelerate thereafter. Population development in China China had for a long time been the country with the largest population worldwide, but according to UN estimates, it has been overtaken by India in 2023. As the population in India is still growing, the country is very likely to remain being home of the largest population on earth in the near future. Due to several mechanisms put into place by the Chinese government as well as changing circumstances in the working and social environment of the Chinese people, population growth has subsided over the past decades, displaying an annual population growth rate of -0.1 percent in 2024. Nevertheless, compared to the world population in total, China held a share of about 17 percent of the overall global population in 2024. China's aging population In terms of demographic developments, the birth control efforts of the Chinese government had considerable effects on the demographic pyramid in China. Upon closer examination of the age distribution, a clear trend of an aging population becomes visible. In order to curb the negative effects of an aging population, the Chinese government abolished the one-child policy in 2015, which had been in effect since 1979, and introduced a three-child policy in May 2021. However, many Chinese parents nowadays are reluctant to have a second or third child, as is the case in most of the developed countries in the world. The number of births in China varied in the years following the abolishment of the one-child policy, but did not increase considerably. Among the reasons most prominent for parents not having more children are the rising living costs and costs for child care, growing work pressure, a growing trend towards self-realization and individualism, and changing social behaviors.

The DACH region refers to the Central European area of Germany (D), Austria (A), and Switzerland (CH). In 2024, these countries had a combined population of 102.84 million people. Germany is, by far, the largest of the three countries, with a population of more than 84.72 million; almost ten times larger than those of Austria or Switzerland. Growth rates However, population growth across the region has been relatively slow during the past two decades, with Germany's population growing by fewer than two million since 2000, which is an increase of just two percent. In contrast, Austria's population has grown by roughly 12 percent, while Switzerland's has increased by over 20 percent, but the overall change in the DACH region's population is less than five percent due to the disproportionate amount of people in Germany. Migration The reason for low population growth is due to the historically low birth rates in Germany. Since 1972, Germany's death rate has consistently exceeded its birth rate, giving an overall natural decline. Austria and Switzerland have also experienced similar trends in some years, but generally see a natural increase. Because of this, population growth is often dependent on migration. The most significant rise in the DACH area's population came in around 2015, during the Syrian migrant crisis. In Europe, Germany took in the largest number of Syrian refugees during this period, while Austria had one of the highest acceptance rates in proportion to its population. This is in addition to the relatively high number of refugees Germany and Austria accept from other countries, especially Afghanistan. Not all migrants are refugees, however, as the high living standards in all three countries attract large numbers of economic migrants from the rest of the world, especially Southern and Eastern Europe.

In 2023, the annual population growth of Singapore was the highest among other Asia-Pacific countries, valuing to almost **** percent. In comparison, in the same year the population of Sri Lanka experienced a negative growth of ***** percent.

In 2024, the total population of Singapore is estimated to be approximately 6.04 million peopl. Population growth in the country is slow and numbers have still not recovered to pre-pandemic levels, where the pandemic's economic impact on migration saw the population fall by a quarter of a million people between 2019 and 2021. The youth is fading Singapore’s population is getting older, with the age bracket of those aged 65 and older increasing with every year. The median age of Singaporeans is increasing rapidly, from 34.1 years in the year 2000 to an estimated 42.4 by 2020, and it is estimated to peak at around 55 years in the middle of the century. The old are here to stay The majority of Singaporeans are between 25 and 60 years old. In the years to come, improving healthcare and one of the highest life expectancies at birth will see this majority shift to the elderly. Additionally, Singapore’s fertility rate is among the lowest in the world and is well below the replacement rate, which means that Singapore’s population is not only getting older but its rate of natural increase (i.e. population growth not including migration) is now negative. This trend could have economic consequences, such as lower GDP growth and increasing old-age dependency.

The study examines the impact of population growth on unemployment in Nigeria, using time series data from 1980 to 2023. The study employed the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression method in estimating the specified equation. The empirical results obtained showed that birth rate had a negative and insignificant impact on unemployment in Nigeria, foreign direct investment has a positive and significant impact on unemployment in Nigeria, gross domestic investment had a negative and insignificant impact on unemployment in Nigeria, government expenditure had a positive and significant impact on unemployment, while immigration had a negative and significant impact on unemployment and money supply had a positive and insignificant impact on unemployment in Nigeria. Based on the findings, it was recommended that government should put in place measures such as the use of contraceptives, condoms and pills aimed at controlling the population rate in the country. It also recommended that government should put in place measures to increase foreign direct investment and other investment that comes into the country. It was finally recommended that the government should put in place measures aimed at boosting the growth of the domestic economy which will in turn make resources available for the provision of employment opportunities for the unemployed.

Shown are country names and codes (see also Fig. 1), population density (PD) rank, population growth rate (PGR) rank, governance quality (GOV) rank, Gross National Income (GNI) rank, natural forest loss (NFL) rank, natural habitat conversion (HBC) rank, marine captures (MC) rank, fertilizer use (FER) rank, water pollution (WTP) rank, proportion of threatened species (PTHR) rank, and carbon emissions (CO2) rank. Constituent variables used to create the pENV are in boldface. See text for details. Missing values denoted by ‘-’.

In the past decade, Japan’s degree of urbanization has leveled off at around 92.04 percent. This means that less than 10 percent of Japan’s population of 126 million inhabitants do not live in an urban setting. Japan is well above the degree of urbanization worldwide, which is 55 percent. Japan is also known for its high population density: In 2017, it amounted to an eye-watering 347.78 inhabitants per square kilometer - however, it is not even among the top twenty countries with the highest population density worldwide. That ranking is lead by Monaco, followed by China, and Singapore. Japan’s aging population The main demographic challenge that Japan currently faces is an aging population, as the number of inhabitants over 65 years old is an increasing percentage of the population. As of 2018, Japan is the country with the largest percentage of total population over 65 years, and life expectancy at birth there is about 84 years. Simultaneously, the birth rate in Japan is declining, resulting in negative population growth in recent years. One method Japan is using to address these demographic shifts is by investing in automated work processes; it's one of the top countries interested in collaborative robots.

Comparative performance analysis of GFSI and its determinates scores/ranks with population growth rate.

The graph shows per capita gross domestic product (GDP) in China until 2024, with forecasts until 2030. In 2024, per capita GDP reached around 13,300 U.S. dollars in China. That year, the overall GDP of China had amounted to 18.7 trillion U.S. dollars. Per capita GDP in China Gross domestic product is a commonly-used economic indicator for measuring the state of a country's economy. GDP is the total market value of goods and services produced in a country within a given period of time, usually a year. Per capita GDP is defined as the GDP divided by the total number of people in the country. This indicator is generally used to compare the economic prosperity of countries with varying population sizes.In 2010, China overtook Japan and became the world’s second-largest economy. As of 2024, it was the largest exporter and the second largest importer in the world. However, one reason behind its economic strength lies within its population size. China has to distribute its wealth among 1.4 billion people. By 2023, China's per capita GDP was only about one fourth as large as that of main industrialized countries. When compared to other emerging markets, China ranked second among BRIC countries in terms of GDP per capita. Future development According to projections by the IMF, per capita GDP in China will escalate from around 13,300 U.S. dollars in 2024 to 18,600 U.S. dollars in 2030. Major reasons for this are comparatively high economic growth rates combined with negative population growth. China's economic structure is also undergoing changes. A major trend lies in the shift from an industry-based to a service-based economy.

Rising global food insecurity driven by population growth needs urgent measure for universal access to food. This research employs Comparative Performance Analysis (CPA) to evaluate the Global Food Security Index (GFSI), its components [Affordability (AF), Availability (AV), Quality & Safety (Q&S) and Sustainability & Adaptation (S&A)] in tandem with Annual Population Change (APC) for world’s five most populous countries (India, China, USA, Indonesia and Pakistan) using dataset spanning from 2012 to 2022. CPA is applied using descriptive analysis, correlation analysis, Rule of Thumb (RoT) and testing of hypothesis etc. RoT is used with a new analytical approach by applying the significance measures for correlation coefficients. The study suggests that India should enhance its GFSI rank by addressing AF and mitigating the adverse effects of APC on GFSI with a particular focus on Q&S and S&A. China needs to reduce the impact of APC on GFSI by prioritizing AV and S&A. The USA is managing its GFSI well, but focused efforts are still required to reduce APC’s impact on Q&S and S&A. Indonesia should improve across all sectors with a particular focus on APC reduction and mitigating its adverse effects on AF, AV, and S&A. Pakistan should intensify efforts to boost its rank and enhance all sectors with reducing APC. There is statistically significant and negative relation between GFSI and APC for China, Indonesia and found insignificant for others countries. This study holds promise for providing crucial policy recommendations to enhance food security by tackling its underlying factors.

PART I: Distribution table: Interval Frequency Cumulative Frequency Percentage distribution Cumulative percentage distribution 10-12 2 2 13.33 13.33 12.1-14 5 7 33.33 46.66 14.1-16 8 15 53.33 99.99 16.1-18 0 15 0 99.99

18.1 0 15 0 99.99

Majority of the countries, eight, fall in the 14.1-16 category. Five countries fall in the 12.1-14 category and two countries in the 10-12 bin. The remaining categories have zero entries. This means the data does not follow a normal distribution since most of the countries are concentrated at the highest peak. This data could be better visualized in a histogram.

Frequency distribution with revised interval: Interval Frequency Cumulative Frequency Percentage Frequency Cumulative percentage <12 2 2 13.33 13.33 12-12.9 1 3 6.67 20 13-13.9 4 7 26.67 46.67 14-14.9 4 11 26.67 73.34 15-15.9 3 14 20 93.34 16-16.9 1 15 6.67 100.01 17-17.9 0 15 0 100.01

18 0 15 0 100.01 Eight countries have between 14% and 18% of their population above age 65. The number of countries with 14% - 18% of their population above 65 years remain the same even after revising the interval. The percentage of countries that have between 14-18 percent of their population above age 65 is 53.33%.

PART II Q1. Time series chart for divorce rate in Netherlands

Q2. Describe divorce rate in Netherlands before and after 1970. There is a decline in divorce rate between 1950 and 1960. There is a moderate rise in divorce rate between 1960 and 1970, the rate steadily rises between 1970 and 1980 and thereafter exhibits a slight decline between 1980 and 1990. The rate shifts to a declining trend after the year 2000. The decline does not indicate negative number of divorces, this could be attributed to increased population size and fewer number of divorce cases filed. Q3. A bar graph would best display the divorce rate for each year, hence easy comparison. Q4. Bar graph The highest number of divorce cases were recorded in the year 2000, while the least number was observed in 1960.

Set 2: Show how different elements contributed to population change in 2018

Immigration contributed 34 percent of the change in population; births, Emigration, and deaths contributed almost equal change in population.

Q2. Elements of population growth

Immigration contributed the largest change in population growth compared to birth.

Q3. A time series to show changes in male and female population

Both populations show an increasing trend over the 4 years. We could also conclude there are more females than males in the country’s population.

System estimation by country equation.