By 2050, the world is expected to house nearly 10 billion people, prompting concerns over
lack of natural resources, increased global temperatures and food shortages.
It is not unusual to hear about the threat of the rapidly growing global population.
On average, each country is seeing their population grow by about one-and-a-quarter percent per
year.
But a number of countries have the opposite problem: a population that is rapidly decreasing,
giving way to its own set of challenges.
So, which countries have shrinking populations?
Although the reasons for a shrinking population vary, the consequences are almost always the
same.
Less people leads to a smaller workforce, slowing economic development and a mass of
public debt.
Well, the worst cases of population decline can be found in Eastern Europe, where many
countries will see their population drop by more than 15 percent over the next three decades.
The most extreme case is Bulgaria, where the population is expected to be roughly 30 percent
smaller by 2060.
That translates to 164 fewer people per day, or 60 thousand per year.
Not far behind Bulgaria is Moldova, which loses just over one percent of its population
annually, and has a death rate akin to war-torn countries in Africa.
Over the last three decades, the populations of these and other Eastern European countries
have plummeted for almost identical reasons.
With the fall of the Soviet Union and subsequent economic collapse, many Bulgarians and Moldovans
were left financially insecure and, thus hesitant to have children.
Although the fertility rate in both countries has improved somewhat since then, it is still
relatively low, at roughly 1.4 births per woman.
In comparison, the global average is 2.5 births per women and roughly 2.1 is needed to maintain
their populations.
Today, the biggest threats to Bulgaria and Moldova’s populations are emigration and
a large proportion of elderly residents.
Both countries also suffer from “brain drain”, or when skilled and educated citizens leave
in search of better opportunities.
In Bulgaria, it’s estimated that twenty percent of college students study abroad,
and of those roughly 80 percent stay abroad.
The governments of Bulgaria and Moldova have launched aggressive campaigns to combat population
decline, which include financial incentives for having more children and job opportunities
to lure back expats.
However nothing thus far has been successful.
But perhaps surprisingly, the country facing the greatest threat is actually Japan.
According to a government report, Japan’s population is expected to cut in half over
the next 66 years, primarily due to its low-birth rate.
Experts say the problem is one of economics.
Cost of living is high, especially in cities where more and more Japanese are living.
What’s more, people of childbearing age are working long hours, leaving them little
time to raise a child.
The problem has gotten so dire, that in 2015 the Japanese government allocated nearly $30
million dollars to lifting birth rates.
This is in addition to a number of work-life balance policies that foster shorter hours,
telecommuting and parental leave.
The government even funds matchmakers, dating services and singles parties in the hopes
that young people will marry and eventually have babies.
In Japan, as well as Eastern Europe, public officials are already preparing for an economic
fallout.
The bottom line is, fewer people in a country means there are fewer people spending money,
working and paying taxes.
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Japan’s population crisis is sparking a social phenomenon known as hikikomori.
To learn more why Japanese youth are checking out of society, watch our video here.
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