Population Structure

Population Structure

1. " Number of people in different age groups and the number of males and females in the population "

2. Population Pyramid

   • Shows the age distribution of males and females in a population
   • Examples
     • Stage 1/2 : Large youthful population and small elderly population ( Due to high birth/death rates)
       • Pyramid would have s wide base and narrowing top
       • Problems Faced
         • Unable to provide sufficient food,housing,health,education and other essential services
         • Lack of resources to sustain the rapidly growing population and bring about an improvement in the standard of living
     • Stage 4: A very large elderly population and a relatively small youthful population. Country is very developed with a highly urbanised and industrialised population.
       • contracting pyramid: A narrow base and wide top
       • Problems Faced
         • High life expectancy --> AGEING POPULATION
           • Government has to provide adequate healthcare and housing for increasing proportion of elderly
         • Shrinking Workforce
           • places an increasing burden on the working population to support their children and the growing number of elderly people

3. Dependency Ratio

   • economically active age group /working population
     • 15 to 64 years
   • dependent age group
     • 0-14 years and above 65
   • High Dependency Ratio
     • High Youth dependency ratio
       • Indicates a rapidly growing population
     • High elderly dependency ratio
       • Indicates an ageing population
         • labour shortages
           • Measures
             • raised retirement age
             • Employers hiring older workers will be subsidised
     • More dependent people than economically active people
       • A strain on the nation's economy. Money has to be diverted from investment in industry and other economic areas and put into services that look after the elderly population
     • Rapidly growing population
       • High Birth Rate and low death rate
         • Mesures
           • incentives to couples who practice family planning
           • imposing penalties on those who have more children than encouraged
       • Education,health services, unemployment, and water and food supply become critical issues
         • E.g. When a large number of youths grow up there will be a surplus in labour in the rural areas of China. These unemployed people will need to work in the non-agricultural sectors of the economy and when they migrate to urban areas, they create pressures on the cities and in turn generate a host of other problems such as overcrowding.