#Most populous country in the world drivers#

Its economy is one of the largest in the world, driven by a mix of manufacturing, services and agriculture.

Whether this decline becomes a crisis depends on how the country responds.Ĭhina is a fascinating country, known for its beautiful landscapes, intricate temples and traditional arts like calligraphy and paper cutting. It's too early to determine if the policy reversal came too late, as now its citizens have grown accustomed to small families. China officially relaxed this policy in 2016 (concerned about reversing demographic trends) and in 2021, increased the limit to up to three children. This was as a result of the country's efforts to reduce rapid population growth through policies like the one-child policy, which limited couples to having a single child from 1980 to 2016. However, its population declined in 2022 for the first time in decades. FOTO/Future Publishing via Getty ImagesĪs we said earlier, China has long been the country with the most people, until this year. Passengers board and disembark from trains at Nanjing Railway Station in Nanjing, China, May 3, 2023. Unemployment rates are stagnant at around 7-8 percent, and only around 49 percent of working-age Indians have jobs, according to the World Bank. There are not enough quality jobs available amid a growing workforce. Though India's population is growing, the government struggles with unemployment. Many large international companies are looking to move into the lively and growing economy, but there are challenges. India is internationally renowned for its vibrantly spiced cuisines, historical and architectural wonders like the Taj Mahal and diverse and rich cultures and religions, including Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam. (India's 2021 census was derailed by the COVID-19 pandemic.) However, the Indian government hasn't conducted an official census since 2011 and hasn't commented on the new statistic, which makes an accurate number challenging to estimate, The AP says. started collecting population data, according to The Associated Press. In 2023, India's population is expected to surpass China's, which has held the title of the most populous country since 1950, when the U.N. Estimated and projected population data was sourced from The United Nations Population Fund. Here are the seven most populous countries in the world. On the other hand, if a country's population continues to shrink, it can mean fewer working people to support a larger number of retirees, and less people available for economic activity, whether as employees or entrepreneurs. Keeping tabs on quickly growing populations helps governments proactively plan for national development and ensure those countries can provide everyone with quality education and economic opportunity. If the number of people exceeds resources like schools, food or health care, it can destabilize the country, potentially leading to significant challenges like poverty and disease.

#Most populous country in the world drivers#

Monitoring population trends and drivers and anticipating changes in demographics is critical for the sustainable development of nations, according to the UN's World Population Prospect Report in 2022. and other organizations don't track the population to award the winning country a shiny gold medal. While sophisticated mathematical equations are involved in the calculation, populations are estimated and not exact. Organizations like the UN Population Division rely on various data sources like censuses, surveys, and birth and death records to calculate population estimates. However, other factors like international migration determine a country's population change over time. Population trends are primarily shaped by a country's fertility rates (average number of births per woman over her lifetime) and mortality (total deaths each year). Together, the two countries make up over 35 percent of the world's entire population.

projected this to happen midyear 2023, but experts aren't sure exactly when it will happen. In April 2023, the United Nations (U.N.) announced that India was set to take over from China as the most populated country in the world. Religious pilgrims bathe in the Ganges River, India, during the Kumbh Mela Hindu Festival in 2013.