8 Billion People Live on Earth – CNET [CNET]

Global population growth has become increasingly concentrated in poorer countries, according to the United Nations.

The world’s population is projected to reach eight billion on Tuesday, according to the United Nations. It took 12 years for the global population to grow from seven to eight billion. 

The intergovernmental organization championed this achievement crediting “improvements in public health, nutrition, personal hygiene and medicine,” while also addressing how poorer countries are those with the highest fertility rates, which contribute to global population growth. Most of these countries, the UN noted, are in sub-Saharan Africa.

“Sustained rapid population growth can thwart the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which remain the world’s best pathway toward a happy and healthy future,” the UN wrote in a release. 

While poorer countries contribute to higher fertility rates, rising income levels are a predominant driver of rapid climate change, it noted. 

“The countries with the highest per capita consumption of material resources and emissions of greenhouse gas emissions tend to be those where income per capita is higher, not those where the population is growing rapidly,” the UN said. 

It will be another 15 years before the global population is projected to reach 9 billion. Slower growth could contribute to further climate crisis mitigation efforts as the world grapples with the effects of rising sea levels, warming temperatures and record-breaking weather patterns.