Population case studies

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Overpopulation - Bangladesh

Low-lying, frequently flooded and prone to tropical storms. With few natural resources, the country depends on agriculture, with over 40% of the population working in it.

8th largest population in the world, with 2.11% of the Earth's inhabitants living there in 2019. The country only has the 92nd largest land area, making population density high. - It has more people than its resources can support.

Bangladesh has more people than its resources can support. GDP per person is low in Bangladesh, are underemployment, meaning they don't work full time, and wages are also low.

According to UNESCO, Bangladesh has an adult literacy rate of just 72.89%. - result of no free or compulsory education system, meaning few people have qualifications.

Access to healthcare is poor in Bangladesh, resulting in a high death rate and infant mortality rate.

In the future Bangladesh will struggle to cope with its growing population. The main challenges the country will face include:

feeding the population

deforestation in the Himalayas leading to increased flooding

overcrowding and pollution in the capital, Dhaka

the increasing likelihood of stronger, more devestating tropical storms

the cost of repairs from flooding and tropical storms means less money is invested in public services

lack of resources, poor infrastructure and underdeveloped tech coupled with the high population have been responsible for decreasing the carrying capacity of the region

Problems of overpopulation

overcrowding areas with traffic congestion - too many vehicles on the road, especially in cities like Dhaka

air pollution: vehicle emissions, industrial discharge, and burning of fossil fuels, groundwater has been polluted due to arsenic.

shortage of food - overcultivation on flood plains of the Ganges river - lower yields and soil exhaustion

widespread deforestation for firewood on the slopes of the Himalayas

severe housing shortages in Dhaka due to mass urbanisation

Reasons for overpopulation:

average monthly earnings for someone living in Bangladesh is 150 dollars compared to 3500 dollars in the USA

therefore people can't afford to move out of the country

Bangladesh has the worlds best agricultural land - people working in the farming industry make a lot of profit

Página 2

Underpopulation: Austrailia

population of 25 million, population density of 3.1 people/ km squared. 7th most underpopulated country in the world.

Causes of underpopulation:

45% of the land is desert or treeless ground making only 10% actually habitable

Austrailia is a MEDC country and education of women and family planning lead to low fertility rate of 1.147 in 2024

maximum temperature of 48.8 C - not all people are suitable for this weather

not many people have migrated to Austrailia since independence in 1901

Impacts:

underutilisation of food production and resources

shortage of labour

not possible to exploit all resources

fewer people paying tax

schools and hospitals may close as there aren't enough people supporting them

public transports links might be closed

hard to defend the coutry

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Youthful population: Uganda

World's youngest population with over 78% of its population below the ag of 30. By 2050 it will become the 6th most populous country in Africa. In early stage 2 of the DTM.

Causes:

birth rate in Uganda is very high as parents are having more children

parents have more children to use as economic producers/ help in their jobs - economic assets

the infant mortality rate is high 45.1 in 2012, so parents have more just incase

lack of contraception that helps protect against pregnancy, and low use of it due to limited access and poverty

low socioeconomic status of women

low education levels especially among females

Threatens agricultural modernisation as population pressure increases deforestation, soil erosion and land degration

Mean age of birth for mothers is 19

Effects:

Lots of money is spent on healthcare as there are more births, more vaccinations used and children being ill

GDP will increase as there would be a larger workforce in the long term and no laws on child labour

As there are more kids, more of them would need to be educated, there would be money spent on education.

Health sector faces human and infrastructural shortages

Pressure on resources, especially in urban areas, increase land fragmentation and decrease in soil fertility causes crop yields to fall

Over crowding, slum growth and deterioration

24m housing deficit

very few people have access to electricity and safe drinking water

35.9% live in poorest wealth

Even if fertility rates dropped, Uganda would still grow for 40 - 50 years

167 000 children under 5 years old die each year

Solutions:

Better family planning, better access to contraception 40% people don't use contraception

Increased education - women will secondary education marry 3 - 4 years later than women with no education

Government incentives - promote parenthood and limit subsidies to the first 2 children

Educating people on contraception can reduce issues associated with overpopulation in Uganda

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Japan - ageing population

Japan has the largest proportion of over-65s of any other country (29%), expected to rise. This causes difficulties as the number of working people declines. Stage 5 of the DTM, 86 in the life expectancy, 28% are 65 years, 13% under 15

Causes:

Japan has a good healthcare provision, leading to people living longer

Women are marrying later, causing lower birth rates

It is very expensive to bring up children in Japan eg: university fees

Sparsely populated rural areas: very few people live on the mountainous slopes in the centre of Honshu island and the south of Shikoku island, mainly because of the lack of flat land, acidic soils and extreme climate.

Many people live on the flat valleys and gentle slopes of the Honshu and Kyushu islands because they have flat land with mild winters, good service provisions such as universities and technologically advanced hospitals and healthcare facilities. Very few people live on the mountainous slopes in the centre of Honshu island and the South of Shikoku island because of:

Lack of flat land for cultivation

thin, infertile and acidic soils

Extreme climate: long cold winters with heavy snow

Remoteness and isolation: transport and communication are difficult

Few jobs available

Impacts:

Difficult to fund people's pensions - can be combatted by later retirement age

Number of old people living in care homes is rising and the cost of this care is shared between the elderly person, their family and the government.

Less revenue generated by government - less spent on infrastructure or building nursing homes

Healthcare provision is becoming stressed to the amount of elderly people

Will not be enough working population to fill all the jobs available

Solutions:

New Angel Plan 1999 - Housing children is easier

Increase size of workforce by incentivizing female labour force

Raise ages for retirement + pensions eligibility

Promote healthier lifestyles: people can work longer and can lead to higher productivity and labour force participation,

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China: One Child Policy: Anti-natal population policy

In 2014, China was the world's most populous country with most than 1.3 billion people in 2014. Representing 20% of the world's people. China suffered from extreme overpopulation.

Issues leading up to the policy: slogans and propaganda like "the more people, the stronger we are,"

High BR 44/1000

Low death rate 22/1000

Low life expectancy of 41 years

20m people dying of famines

Relationship between population and resources couldn't be maintained Malthus theory

Causes:

social/ cultural desire to have a son

economical bonus: men could work in the field

children considered to be social security

previously poor medical infrastructure - high mortality rate

flood 1959 - 1962: 20 million died

In 1965 the birth rate had grown to 40 births per 1000 until politicians realised the growing problem and launched the One child Policy in 1979.

Incentives of sticking to the 1 child policy:

5 - 10% salary bonus

free education and health care

free contraceptions

preferential employment

preferential housing

Penalties of sticking to the 1 child policy:

fines of US 400 - 1400

10 % salary reduction

no free education

forced abortion

not allowed to buy a house

Positive consequences of the policy:

better education and skilled workforce

average fertility reduced to 1.7

low urban poverty

BR fell 39/1000 in 1960 and 12/1000 in 2015

Reduced fertility rate 2.9 in 1979 to 1.6 in 1995 so now below replacement level

250 million births prevented

Negative consequences of the policy:

female fanticide: 114 boys for every 100 girl

forced abortion

abnormal sex ratio: 33.5 million extra males, men unable to marry

336 million abortions

222 million sterilisations

more divorce

lack of working population to support old dependents

girls abandoned

GDP has decreased by 5 - 6% - economy is declining

Lead to a creation of 2 - 3 policy

Exceptions to the policy

Han Chinese allowed a second child

ethnic minorities

rural areas

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South Sudan Food Shortages

More than 70,000 people have died mostly from hunger. 1955 conflict between both Muslims and Christians.

Causes:

Long civil war - lasted over 20 years, at times the UN world food programme stopped deliveries of vital food supplies as situation was deemed too dangerous for drivers and workers

Refugees have no ability to command food for themselves as political situation is so unstable they can't farm their land and have had to move to the relavite secutiru of refugee camps - They have lost their entitlement to farm their land and are reliant upon abilities of food programmes

Physical factors:

Long term decline of rainfall in southern Sudan - drought

Increased rainfall variability

Increased use of marginal land leading to degradation

Flooding - experiences periods of high precipitation eg: 2019 flooding increases weed, pests and diseases in crop field. Flooding leads to poisoning of water sources and spreading of diseases like cholera

Social factors:

High population growth of 3% linked to use of marginal land - overgrazing, erosion

High female illiteracy rates 65%

58 years old life expectancy

Poor infant health

Increased threats of AIDS, mostly for children - high IMR and high youthful population

Higher rates of malnutrition means higher vulnerability of diseases

5% roads accessible, remaining 95% is arable and usually muddied during winter

Double taxation and tolling - farmer's have reduce the amount of load delivered to urban areas and will have to increase prices in order to pay for transport fees

Agricultural factors:

Highly variable per person food production

Static or falling crop yields

Low and falling fertiliser use

Lack of a food surplus for use in crisis

Continous eviction of land and refugees don't have a reliable land plot to plant crops - a majority of South Sudan relies on subsistence farming - 90%

Economic/ political factors:

High dependency on farming 70% of labour force and 37% GDP

Dependency on food imports

Limited access to markets to buy food or infrastructure to distribute it

Inflayion of food prices and therefore reduces availability

Debt repayments limit social and economic spending

High military spending

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The Green Revolution

Happened in Mexico, stem rust epidemic was killing crops and caused small yields - fungus. It was accomplished over 3 years and shuttle breeding was used to create plants resistant. They were arranged in lines; therefore they were insensitive to time of day irresponsive to fertiliser.

Semi dwarf wheat were shorter stalks that could support the grains - yielded more than other varieties, and were known as miracle seedes, in 1956 Mexico became self - sufficient.

Give three examples of the modern role of agricultural technology:

Development of high-yielding seeds

Genetic engineering - controversial but has spread significantly around the world

Precision agriculture - integration of information to improve agricultural knowledge in addressing site specific production targets

Discuss the advantages of disadvantages of the Green Revolution:

Advantages: yields are twice to four times greater than of traditional varieties, farming incomes have increased, allowing the purchase of machines, better seeds, fertilisers and pesticides, shorter growing season has allowed the introduction of an extra crop in some areas

Disadvantages: high inputs of fertiliser and pesticide are required to optimise production - costly in economic and environmental terms,

in some areas rural indebtedness has risen sharply, high-yielding varieties require more weed control and are often more susceptible to pests and disease. Mechanisation has increased rural unemployment.

How may perennial crops lead to a new agricultural revolution?

As they protect the soil from erosion and over next few years biologists hope to breed plants that resemble domestic crops and retain their perennial habit.

Objective is to find genes that are linked to domestication and insert them into wild plants.