Population Change Case Studies

Population Change Case Studies

1. Managing populations

   • Youthful Population - Uganda
     • like many poorer and less developed countries
     • in 2007 50% of the population were under 15 years old
     • In 2007, only 3% of the population were over 65
     • the reasons why include:
       • High birth and fertility rates
         • every year there are 48 babies born per 1000 people
         • on average women have 7 children between the ages of 15 - 44
       • Low life expectancy
         • the life expectancy is around 52 years and there are very few people older than this
     • problems for Uganda:
       • pressure on health service
         • around 6000 women each year die of child birth
         • when the youthful population reaches reproductive age the pressure on the health system will be even greater
         • the health service is also stretched because of HIV/AIDs which can be passed from mother to child- putting further strain on the system
       • Unemployment gets worse
         • in 2003 unemployment was 3.2% - however 50% of the population are under 15 and weren't counted for
         • when the large youthful population get to working age there won't be enough jobs - increasing the amount of poverty
   • Ageing Population - UK
     • like most wealthy and developed Countries
     • people over 65 make up a large part of the population
     • in 2005 16% of the population were over the age of 65
     • by 2041 the number of people over 65 is expected to rise to 25%
     • The reasons why include:
       • Increasing life expectancy:
         • between 1980 and 2006, the life expectancy rose 2.8 years for women and 4 years for men
           • Currently the life expectancy for men is 76.9 years old and for women it is 81.3 years old
       • Baby booms:
         • lots of babies born in the 1940's and 1960's
         • these large generations are now reaching retirement age.
       • falling birth rate:
         • women are having less children (careers) therefore there are less young people to support the elderly population.
     • Problems for the UK
       • pressure on the pension system
         • there aren't enough people of working age to pay for adequate pension
         • state pensions are paid for by the working population through taxes
         • 60% of the population are paying taxes that go towards the pensions of 19% of the population
         • by 2030 only 56% of the population will be able to pay taxes and they will pay for 27% of the populations pensions
       • more elderly people living in poverty
         • the state pension isn't very large and many people don't have any other savings
         • the working population isn't large enough to provide a better pension
       • Pressure on the health service
         • older people often need more medical care than younger people
         • the average stay in hospital in 2005 for over 75 year olds was 13 nights