The Fastest Growing Countries in Asia

The world population in the 1950s was approximately 2.6 billion, and by 1987 it had reached 5 billion while in 1999 it stood at 6 billion. By 2011 the population in the world had 7 billion and 7.6 billion in 2017, it is estimated that by 2060 it will have hit 10 billion. These figures indicate that there has been an increase of more than a billion people in a span of twelve years. According to the UN population division, 60% of the world population lives in Asia which translates to about 4.4 billion people, 16% lives in Africa or about 1.2 billion people, 10% lives in Europe or approximately 738 million people, 9% lives in Latin America and the Caribbean or about 634 million, while 5% lives in North America or about 358 million. In Oceania, there are about 39 million people. The exponential growth in world’s population is driven by the increasing number of persons reaching the reproductive age coupled with key changes in fertility rates, rising urbanization, and increasing migration. These are the primary factors that will have huge implications for future generations.

The Fastest Growing Countries in Asia

Oman

Oman is a country in the Middle East with an estimated population of 4.6 million in 2017. The country has an annual growth rate of 8.45%. It is estimated that around 50% of the population lives in Muscat and Al Batinah. Immigrants from Pakistan, Philippines, India, Morocco, Bangladesh, and Jordan account for about 45% of the population. Oman has attracted many migrants as it has a fast growing economy and few natives. In 2010, a UN estimate indicated that 70% of the population lies between the ages of 15 and 64. Life expectancy in Oman according to the CIA Factbook is 74.16 years, and 91.1 % of the total population is literate. According to the UN estimates the Total Fertility Rate/ the number of children per woman from 2005 to 2010 was 2.52.

Lebanon

Lebanon is in Western Asian, and the population of the country was estimated at 7.75 million in January 2017. According to the CIA Factbook, the country had 2 million Syrian and 450,000 Palestinian refugees in 2014. Lebanon’s population grows by 5.99% yearly. The estimated life expectancy in 2014 was 77.22 years; females had a higher life expectancy of 78 years compared to 76 years for males. 68% of the total population is of the age between 15 and 64 years. According to the UN estimates, the fertility rate in the country between 2010 and 2015 was 1.81.

Kuwait

Kuwait is an Arab country on the Persian Gulf with an estimated population of 4.14 million people in 2017. The capital city, Kuwait City, had an estimated population of 4.1 million in 2016. Working immigrants account for around 70% of Kuwait’s population. 1.1 million of the immigrants are of Arab origin, and 1.4 million are of Asian descent. The natives of Kuwait account for only 20 to 30% of the total population. The overall fertility rate between 2010 and 2015 was 2.32. According to UN estimates, there were 61,313 live births in 2014, the number of live births increases yearly. 72.2% of the total population is aged between 15 and 64 years. According to the CIA World Factbook, in 2013, South Asians made up most of the population at 37.8% followed by Kuwaiti nationals at 28%, Arabs at 27.9%, Africans at 1.9% and other nationalities at 1.1%.

Reasons For Increasing World Population

About 14 countries in Asia have a population growth rate of 2% or more. The global growth rate has increased throughout the years due to lower mortality rates and improvement of medical care. The highest population growth rates are in Sub-Saharan Africa, and the lowest are in Europe. Low fertility rates in Europe are causing the population growth to slow down in the continent.