Population - A Resource of A Burden?

Developed countries tend to have population decline. Certain countries are even experiencing zero, if not negative population growth. Japan, for example, is facing the problem of greying population with deaths exceeding births by 31,034. In the United States, declining and ageing population also spells trouble for the workforce.

Cost of raising children in developed countries is high, especially in Japan and the U.K. where living cost is much higher than any other country. This daunts many couples thinking of bearing a child. On the other hand, developing countries have the fastest population growth, particularly in the poorest regions. Poor agricultural-based economy requires labour work. Hence, families tend to have more children to rely on to do chores and for security when parents reach old age. They also lack access to family planning, tending to have many children as an insurance against high-mortality rates.

In contrast, economies in developed countries are driven by service industries, which demand skilled workers, rather than huge unskilled labour pool. Children are, thus, deemed as liabilities by many parents who are responsible for children's basic necessity, education, etc. Furthermore, as women are liberated and educated, their involvement in workforce also means a shift to later marriage. This is also a factor contributing to low fertility rate.

It has been said that taken as a whole, the problem with world population, usually manifested in the shortage of resources is not due to population growth as such but to the inequitable distribution of wealth and resources. Some economists have bought into the thesis, owning to the fact that developed nations consume 80% of the world natural resources annually. In addition to their poor resource management, the poorer nations are in the lower end when it comes to allocation of resources. This aggravates the problem that the Rich gets richer while the Poor gets poorer.