Realizing the Hopes and Aspirations of Young people Today and for the Future

Many demographers argue that the world is entering a global population crisis. The challenge is more complex because different regions face opposite problems at the same time. In 2025, falling fertility rates are making global headlines, with some governments warning of a “population collapse” and introducing drastic policies to boost births. Since 1990, World Population Day has been observed on July 11. This year's World Population Day theme is "Realizing the hopes and aspirations of young people today and for the future." This year’s theme highlights how young people's decisions about education, employment, housing, relationships, and family life are increasingly influenced by the cities they inhabit. Two-thirds of the global population now lives in areas where fertility rates are below 2.1 children per woman the threshold needed to keep population size stable. In the early 1970s, women had on average 4.5 children each; by 2015, total fertility for the world had fallen to below 2.5 children per woman. Meanwhile, average global life expectancy has risen, from 64.6 years in the early 1990s to 72.6 years in 2019. The United Nations (UN) adds that in addition, the world is seeing high levels of urbanization and accelerating migration. 2007 was the first year in which more people lived in urban areas than in rural areas, and by 2050 about 66 per cent of the world population will be living in cities. These megatrends have far-reaching implications. They affect economic development, employment, income distribution, poverty and social protections. They also affect efforts to ensure universal access to health care, education, housing, sanitation, water, food and energy. To more sustainably address the needs of individuals, policymakers must understand how many people are living on the planet, where they are, how old they are, and how many people will come after them. The world population reached 8 billion in 2023. The projection is that global population will reach 8.2 billion in July 2026, 9 billion by 2039, 10 billion by 2060, and peak at 10.6 billion in 2092 before declining. Undoubtedly, young people are concerned about their futures. Many expect to experience worse outcomes than their parents did. Their concerns about climate change, economic instability and rising global conflicts will be reflected in the choices they make about raising families. On this World Population Day, governments should redouble their commitments to invest in the education of young people, especially girls. Importantly, more effort should be made to increase the ages of marriage and first childbearing in countries where these have an early onset - will have positive outcomes for women’s health, educational attainment and labour force participation. These efforts will also contribute to reducing the scale of the investments required to achieve sustainable development while ensuring that no one is left behind. In the words of UN Secretary-General António Guterres, across the globe, young people are stepping up – as leaders, innovators, activists and more to tackle shared challenges. We must match their determination with greater investments in education, sexual and reproductive health, decent work and real participation in decision-making. Wayne Campbell is an educator and social commentator with an interest in development policies as they affect culture and or gender issues. waykam@yahoo.com @WayneCamo ©