STUDY// There will be no end to world population growth in this century, says the UN, adding that the world's population will increase from 7.3 billion people to 9.7 billion in 2050, and 11.2 billion at the century's end! Asia, with a current population of 4.4 billion, is likely to remain the most populous continent, with its population expected to peak around the middle of the century at 5.3 billion, and then to decline to around 4.9 billion people by the end of the century.

Developing countries with young populations but lower fertility such as India face the prospect of substantial population ageing before the end of the century. "India, along with China and Brazil, need to invest some of the benefits of their demographic dividend in the coming decades toward provisions for the older population of the future such as social security, pensions and health care,” said John R Wilmoth, director of the United Nations’ (UN) Population Division. “The probability that world population growth will end within this century to be 23 percent,” he added while addressing a session focused on demographic forecasting at the “2015 Joint Statistical Meetings” (JSM 2015) in Seattle on August 10.