The world's population first reached one billion people in 1805, and reached eight billion in 2022, and will peak at almost 10.2 billion by the end of the century. Although it took thousands of years to reach one billion people, it did so at the beginning of a phenomenon known as the demographic transition; from this point onwards, population growth has skyrocketed, and since the 1960s the population has increased by one billion people every 12 to 15 years. The demographic transition sees a sharp drop in mortality due to factors such as vaccination, sanitation, and improved food supply; the population boom that follows is due to increased survival rates among children and higher life expectancy among the general population; and fertility then drops in response to this population growth. Regional differences The demographic transition is a global phenomenon, but it has taken place at different times across the world. The industrialized countries of Europe and North America were the first to go through this process, followed by some states in the Western Pacific. Latin America's population then began growing at the turn of the 20th century, but the most significant period of global population growth occurred as Asia progressed in the late-1900s. As of the early 21st century, almost two-thirds of the world's population lives in Asia, although this is set to change significantly in the coming decades. Future growth The growth of Africa's population, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, will have the largest impact on global demographics in this century. From 2000 to 2100, it is expected that Africa's population will have increased by a factor of almost five. It overtook Europe in size in the late 1990s, and overtook the Americas a few years later. In contrast to Africa, Europe's population is now in decline, as birth rates are consistently below death rates in many countries, especially in the south and east, resulting in natural population decline. Similarly, the population of the Americas and Asia are expected to go into decline in the second half of this century, and only Oceania's population will still be growing alongside Africa. By 2100, the world's population will have over three billion more than today, with the vast majority of this concentrated in Africa. Demographers predict that climate change is exacerbating many of the challenges that currently hinder progress in Africa, such as political and food instability; if Africa's transition is prolonged, then it may result in further population growth that would place a strain on the region's resources, however, curbing this growth earlier would alleviate some of the pressure created by climate change.

Today, globally, women of childbearing age have an average of approximately 2.2 children over the course of their lifetime. In pre-industrial times, most women could expect to have somewhere between five and ten live births throughout their lifetime; however, the demographic transition then sees fertility rates fall significantly. Looking ahead, it is believed that the global fertility rate will fall below replacement level in the 2050s, which will eventually lead to population decline when life expectancy plateaus. Recent decades Between the 1950s and 1970s, the global fertility rate was roughly five children per woman - this was partly due to the post-WWII baby boom in many countries, on top of already-high rates in less-developed countries. The drop around 1960 can be attributed to China's "Great Leap Forward", where famine and disease in the world's most populous country saw the global fertility rate drop by roughly 0.5 children per woman. Between the 1970s and today, fertility rates fell consistently, although the rate of decline noticeably slowed as the baby boomer generation then began having their own children. Replacement level fertility Replacement level fertility, i.e. the number of children born per woman that a population needs for long-term stability, is approximately 2.1 children per woman. Populations may continue to grow naturally despite below-replacement level fertility, due to reduced mortality and increased life expectancy, however, these will plateau with time and then population decline will occur. It is believed that the global fertility rate will drop below replacement level in the mid-2050s, although improvements in healthcare and living standards will see population growth continue into the 2080s when the global population will then start falling.

In 2020, the child and old-age dependency ratios in China ranged at around 25.9 and 18.2 percent respectively, summing up to a total dependency ratio of 44.1 percent. While the child dependency ratio is expected to drop slightly and then remain stable, the old-age dependency ratio will rise steadily in coming decades. Age demographics in China With a populace of 1.4 billion people by the end of 2023, China stands the country with the second largest population in the world. Since its foundation in 1949, the PRC has experienced high population growth. With the beginning of the reform period in the end of the 1970s, population growth decreased steadily. Finally, China's population size peaked in 2021 and entered a declining path. Falling birth rates in combination with higher life expectancy led to a continuously increasing median age of the population in China over the past five decades. The median age of the Chinese population is expected to rise further and to reach 50 years by the middle of the century. Development of the dependency ratio China has enjoyed a continuously growing work force since the late 1970s. Simultaneously, the total dependency ratio in China decreased from 80 percent in 1970 to about 37 percent in 2010. However, an important turning point was reached in 2011, as the total dependency ratio was set to increase again after 30 years of population bonus. As can be seen from the above graph, until 2100, child-dependency is estimated to remain steady around 15 to 20 percent. Old-age dependency on the other hand is expected to grow from about 12 percent in 2010 to 69 percent in 2060, implying a growing number of senior citizens that need support from the working population. The shift of age demographics in the near future in China is bound to have ineligible economical and social impacts. To learn more about age demographics in China, take a look at our dossier aging population in China.

The total fertility rate of the world has dropped from around 5 children per woman in 1950, to 2.2 children per woman in 2025, which means that women today are having fewer than half the number of children that women did 75 years ago. Replacement level fertility This change has come as a result of the global demographic transition, and is influenced by factors such as the significant reduction in infant and child mortality, reduced number of child marriages, increased educational and vocational opportunities for women, and the increased efficacy and availability of contraception. While this change has become synonymous with societal progress, it does have wide-reaching demographic impact - if the global average falls below replacement level (roughly 2.1 children per woman), as is expected to happen in the 2050s, then this will lead to long-term population decline on a global scale. Regional variations When broken down by continent, Africa is the only region with a fertility rate above the global average, and, alongside Oceania, it is the only region with a fertility rate above replacement level. Until the 1980s, the average woman in Africa could expect to have 6-7 children over the course of their lifetime, and there are still several countries in Africa where women can still expect to have 5 or more children in 2025. Historically, Europe has had the lowest fertility rates in the world over the past century, falling below replacement level in 1975. Europe's population has grown through a combination of migration and increasing life expectancy, however even high immigration rates could not prevent its population from going into decline in 2021.

In 2023, there were about 15.09 million children living with a single mother in the United States, and about 3.05 million children living with a single father. The number of children living with a single mother is down from its peak in 2012, and the number of children living with a single father is down from its peak in 2005.

Marriage and divorce in the United States

Despite popular opinion in the United States that “half of all marriages end in divorce,” the divorce rate in the U.S. has fallen significantly since 1992. The marriage rate, which has also been decreasing since the 1990s, was still higher than the divorce rate in 2021. Half of all marriages may not end in divorce, but it does seem that fewer people are choosing to get married in the first place.

New family structures

In addition to a falling marriage rate, fewer people in the U.S. have children under the age of 18 living in the house in comparison to 1970. Over the past decade, the share of families with children under 18, whether that be married couples or single parents, has stayed mostly steady, although the number of births in the U.S. has also fallen.

The graph illustrates the number of babies born in the United States from 1995 to 2025. The x-axis represents the years, labeled from '95 to '25, while the y-axis shows the annual number of births. Over this 30-year period, birth numbers peaked at 4,316,233 in 2007 and reached a low of 3,596,017 in 2023. The data reveals relatively stable birth rates from 1995 to 2010, with slight fluctuations, followed by a gradual decline starting around 2017. The information is presented in a line graph format, effectively highlighting the long-term downward trend in U.S. birth numbers over the specified timeframe.

Globally, about 25 percent of the population is under 15 years of age and 10 percent is over 65 years of age. Africa has the youngest population worldwide. In Sub-Saharan Africa, more than 40 percent of the population is below 15 years, and only three percent are above 65, indicating the low life expectancy in several of the countries. In Europe, on the other hand, a higher share of the population is above 65 years than the population under 15 years. Fertility rates The high share of children and youth in Africa is connected to the high fertility rates on the continent. For instance, South Sudan and Niger have the highest population growth rates globally. However, about 50 percent of the world’s population live in countries with low fertility, where women have less than 2.1 children. Some countries in Europe, like Latvia and Lithuania, have experienced a population decline of one percent, and in the Cook Islands, it is even above two percent. In Europe, the majority of the population was previously working-aged adults with few dependents, but this trend is expected to reverse soon, and it is predicted that by 2050, the older population will outnumber the young in many developed countries. Growing global population As of 2025, there are 8.1 billion people living on the planet, and this is expected to reach more than nine billion before 2040. Moreover, the global population is expected to reach 10 billions around 2060, before slowing and then even falling slightly by 2100. As the population growth rates indicate, a significant share of the population increase will happen in Africa.

The game has attracted a diverse group of players ranging from young children all the way through to older adults. Here’s the full breakdown of Minecraft user statistics.

In 2025, there are six countries, all in Sub-Saharan Africa, where the average woman of childbearing age can expect to have between 5-6 children throughout their lifetime. In fact, of the 20 countries in the world with the highest fertility rates, Afghanistan and Yemen are the only countries not found in Sub-Saharan Africa. High fertility rates in Africa With a fertility rate of almost six children per woman, Chad is the country with the highest fertility rate in the world. Population growth in Chad is among the highest in the world. Lack of healthcare access, as well as food instability, political instability, and climate change, are all exacerbating conditions that keep Chad's infant mortality rates high, which is generally the driver behind high fertility rates. This situation is common across much of the continent, and, although there has been considerable progress in recent decades, development in Sub-Saharan Africa is not moving as quickly as it did in other regions. Demographic transition While these countries have the highest fertility rates in the world, their rates are all on a generally downward trajectory due to a phenomenon known as the demographic transition. The third stage (of five) of this transition sees birth rates drop in response to decreased infant and child mortality, as families no longer feel the need to compensate for lost children. Eventually, fertility rates fall below replacement level (approximately 2.1 children per woman), which eventually leads to natural population decline once life expectancy plateaus. In some of the most developed countries today, low fertility rates are creating severe econoic and societal challenges as workforces are shrinking while aging populations are placin a greater burden on both public and personal resources.

The fertility rate in Denmark fluctuated over the past two decades. It peaked at 1.9 children per woman in 2010 but started to decline since then, dropping to 1.5 in 2023. In Europe, Andorra had the lowest fertility rate in 2023. The fertility rate shows the average number of children a woman would give birth to if she lived through her child-bearing years.

In 1930, the average woman of childbearing age in Kenya would have had just under seven children over the course of their reproductive years. This rate would steadily increase until the end of the 1960s, peaking at just over eight children per woman in 1970. Following this peak, a combination of strong national and international promotion of family planning in Kenya and an expansion of contraceptive use would lead to a sharp decrease in the fertility rate, resulting in an average of 3.19 children in 2024. Teenage fertility in Kenya In 2022, most teenage pregnancies occurred among 19-year-olds. There is a strong correlation between adolescents who had ever been pregnant and those who had no education. Additionally, those who form part of the highest wealth quintile in the country were less likely to have ever been pregnant. Overall decreasing trends in Kenya’s fertility ratesAlthough fertility rates in Kenya have dropped considerably since 1989, the global fertility rate is significantly lower. Kenyans living in rural areas have a higher total fertility rate compared to those living in urban areas. This is reportedly due to differences in the level of education, the use of contraception, and the desire to live a quality life. Between 1995 and 2000, the decline in fertility rates in Kenya slowed somewhat, partly due to the government prioritizing and reallocating healthcare resources towards combatting the then-emerging HIV/AIDS epidemic. However, resources for contraceptives and family planning commenced once more around 2003, and as a result, the total fertility rate began to fall steadily again.

In 2025, the total population of South Korea is projected to be around ***** million. In thirty years, the number of people aged 15 to 64 is estimated to decrease by one-third, while the number of older adults is anticipated to more than double. Additionally, the overall population is expected to decline by around *** million people by that time. Declining birth rate Several factors are contributing to the expected demographic changes in South Korea. Firstly, the birth rate has been declining for years. As of 2024, South Korea had the lowest fertility rate in the world. This trend continues despite the efforts of successive governments to encourage young people to have children. An increasing number of South Korean women are prioritizing their careers, often choosing to focus on work rather than starting a family at a young age. While the employment rate for South Korean women is still lower than that of men, it has steadily risen over the past decade. Increase in life expectancy Secondly, life expectancy in South Korea has steadily increased due to improved living standards and healthcare. The average life expectancy at birth for South Koreans has risen from less than 75 years to almost 83 years over the past twenty years. As a result, the proportion of people aged 65 and older has grown from less than ** percent to around ** percent in the last decade.

In 2022, there were about 25.8 million children between the ages of 12 and 17 years old living in the United States. On the other hand, there were about 22.4 million children between the ages of zero and five years old in the country.

While the standard image of the nuclear family with two parents and 2.5 children has persisted in the American imagination, the number of births in the U.S. has steadily been decreasing since 1990, with about 3.6 million babies born in 2023. In 1990, this figure was 4.16 million. Birth and replacement rates A country’s birth rate is defined as the number of live births per 1,000 inhabitants, and it is this particularly important number that has been decreasing over the past few decades. The declining birth rate is not solely an American problem, with EU member states showing comparable rates to the U.S. Additionally, each country has what is called a “replacement rate.” The replacement rate is the rate of fertility needed to keep a population stable when compared with the death rate. In the U.S., the fertility rate needed to keep the population stable is around 2.1 children per woman, but this figure was at 1.67 in 2022. Falling birth rates Currently, there is much discussion as to what exactly is causing the birth rate to decrease in the United States. There seem to be several factors in play, including longer life expectancies, financial concerns (such as the economic crisis of 2008), and an increased focus on careers, all of which are causing people to wait longer to start a family. How international governments will handle falling populations remains to be seen, but what is clear is that the declining birth rate is a multifaceted problem without an easy solution.

In 2022, around 113,600 babies were born in Belgium. This was one of the lowest number of births in the last decade. The number of children born in the country peaked in 2010, at just over 129,000. The Flemish Region saw the largest number of newborns in 2020, at roughly 62,800. The number of children born in the Brussels-Capital Region was roughly one quarter of this, at around 15,800.

 Declining birth rate  

2010 was not just the year with the largest number of babies born in the last ten years, the birth rate also peaked that year, at 1.84 children per woman. In 2018 the birth rate in Belgium also reached its lowest point since 2010, at 1.63. For the next three years, a very small increase in the birth rate is forecast, though. In 2020, the birth rate is expected to reach 1.66 children per woman.

Trends in crude birth rate  

In the last 75 years, the crude birth rate in Belgium dropped significantly, from 16.8 to just 10.8 births per 1,000 people. Babies born today in Belgium were, however, expected to reach an age of more than 81 years.

In 2023, the around 11.1 percent of the population was living below the national poverty line in the United States. Poverty in the United StatesAs shown in the statistic above, the poverty rate among all people living in the United States has shifted within the last 15 years. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) defines poverty as follows: “Absolute poverty measures poverty in relation to the amount of money necessary to meet basic needs such as food, clothing, and shelter. The concept of absolute poverty is not concerned with broader quality of life issues or with the overall level of inequality in society.” The poverty rate in the United States varies widely across different ethnic groups. American Indians and Alaska Natives are the ethnic group with the most people living in poverty in 2022, with about 25 percent of the population earning an income below the poverty line. In comparison to that, only 8.6 percent of the White (non-Hispanic) population and the Asian population were living below the poverty line in 2022. Children are one of the most poverty endangered population groups in the U.S. between 1990 and 2022. Child poverty peaked in 1993 with 22.7 percent of children living in poverty in that year in the United States. Between 2000 and 2010, the child poverty rate in the United States was increasing every year; however,this rate was down to 15 percent in 2022. The number of people living in poverty in the U.S. varies from state to state. Compared to California, where about 4.44 million people were living in poverty in 2022, the state of Minnesota had about 429,000 people living in poverty.

Somalia was the African country with the highest fertility rate in 2023. There, each woman had an average of around 6.1 children in her reproductive years. Fertility levels in Africa remain high despite a steady decline The fertility rate in Africa has gradually decreased since 2000 and is projected to decline further in the coming years. Factors including improved socio-economic conditions and educational opportunities, lower infant mortality, and decreasing poverty levels have driven the declining birth rate on the continent. Nevertheless, Africa remains the continent with the highest fertility rate worldwide. As of 2023, women in Africa had an average of 4.07 children in their reproductive years. Africa was the only continent registering a fertility rate higher than the global average, which was set at 2.4 children per woman. Worldwide, the continent also had the highest adolescent fertility rate as of 2022, with West and Central Africa leading with 105 births per 1,000 girls aged 15 to 19 years. Africa’s population keeps growing According to projections, over 46 million births will be registered in Africa in 2023. Contrary to the declining fertility rate, the absolute number of births on the continent will continue to grow in the coming years to reach around 49.4 million by 2030. In general, Africa’s population – amounting to over 1.48 billion inhabitants as of 2023 – is forecast to increase considerably and achieve 2.5 billion in 2050. Countries such as Niger, Angola, and Equatorial Guinea are key drivers of population growth in Africa, registering the highest average population growth rate on the continent between 2020 and 2025. For instance, in that period, Niger’s population was forecast to expand by 3.7 percent each year.

Projections estimate that the population in Italy will decrease in the following years. In January 2025, the Italian population added up to 59 million people, but in 2030 Italians will be 58 million individuals. Twenty years later, the population will be around 52 million people. Low birth rate and old population The birth rate in Italy has constantly dropped in the last years. In 2023, 6.4 children were born per 1,000 inhabitants, three babies less than in 2002. Nationwide, the highest number of births was registered in the southern regions, whereas central Italy had the lowest number of children born every 1,000 people. More specifically, the birth rate in the south stood at 7 infants, while in the center it was equal to 5.9 births. Consequently, the population in Italy has aged over the last decade. Between 2002 and 2024, the age distribution of the Italian population showed a growing share of people aged 65 years and older. As a result, the share of young people decreased. The European exception Similarly, the population in Europe is estimated to decrease in the coming years. In 2024, there were 740 million people living in Europe. In 2100, the figure is expected to drop to 586 million inhabitants. However, projections of the world population suggest that Europe might be the only continent experiencing a population decrease. For instance, the population in Africa could grow from 1.41 billion people in 2022 to 3.92 billion individuals in 2100, the fastest population growth worldwide.

In 2024, around **** million babies were born in China. The number of births has increased slightly from **** million in the previous year, but is much lower than the ***** million births recorded in 2016. Demographic development in China In 2022, the Chinese population decreased for the first time in decades, and population decline is expected to accelerate in the upcoming years. To curb the negative effects of an aging population, the Chinese government decided in 2013 to gradually relax the so called one-child-policy, which had been in effect since 1979. From 2016 onwards, parents in China were allowed to have two children in general. However, as the recent figures of births per year reveal, this policy change had only short-term effects on the general birth rate: the number of births slightly increased from 2014 onwards, but then started to fell again in 2018. In 2024, China was the second most populous country in the world, overtaken by India that year. China’s aging population The Chinese society is aging rapidly and facing a serious demographic shift towards older age groups. The median age of China’s population has increased massively from about ** years in 1970 to **** years in 2020 and is projected to rise continuously until 2080. In 2020, approximately **** percent of the Chinese were 60 years and older, a figure that is forecast to rise as high as ** percent by 2060. This shift in demographic development will increase social and elderly support expenditure of the society as a whole. One measure for this social imbalance is the old-age dependency ratio, measuring the relationship between economic dependent older age groups and the working-age population. The old-age dependency ratio in China is expected to soar to ** percent in 2060, implying that by then three working-age persons will have to support two elderly persons.

Niger had the highest birth rate in the world in 2024, with a birth rate of 46.6 births per 1,000 inhabitants. Angola, Benin, Mali, and Uganda followed. Except for Afghanistan, all 20 countries with the highest birth rates in the world were located in Sub-Saharan Africa. High infant mortality The reasons behind the high birth rates in many Sub-Saharan African countries are manyfold, but a major reason is that infant mortality remains high on the continent, despite decreasing steadily over the past decades, resulting in high birth rates to counter death rates. Moreover, many nations in Sub-Saharan Africa are highly reliant on small-scale farming, meaning that more hands are of importance. Additionally, polygamy is not uncommon in the region, and having many children is often seen as a symbol of status. Fastest-growing populations As the high fertility rates coincide with decreasing death rates, countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have the highest population growth rates in the world. As a result, Africa's population is forecast to increase from 1.4 billion in 2022 to over 3.9 billion by 2100.