Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share Is the UN underestimating the global fall in fertility?
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
Is the UN underestimating the global fall in fertility?
Every two years, the UN release their predictions for the future population of humanity – currently expected to peak in the 2080s at around 10.3 billion people.
One of the things they use to work this out is the fertility rate, the number of children the average woman is expected to have in her lifetime. When this number falls below 2, the overall population eventually falls.
In this episode of More or Less, we look at the fertility estimates for one country – Argentina. The graph of the real and predicted fertility rate for that country looks quite strange.
The collected data – that covers up to the present day – shows a fertility rate that’s falling fast. But the predicted rate for the future immediately levels out.
The strangeness has led some people to think that the UN might be underestimating the current fall in global fertility.
To explain what’s going on we speak to Patrick Gerland, who runs the population estimates team in the United Nations Population Division.
Presenter / producer: Tom Colls
Production co-ordinator: Brenda Brown
Sound mix: Sue Maillot
Editor: Richard Vadon
View all episodes
By BBC Radio 4
4.7
766766 ratings
Every two years, the UN release their predictions for the future population of humanity – currently expected to peak in the 2080s at around 10.3 billion people.
One of the things they use to work this out is the fertility rate, the number of children the average woman is expected to have in her lifetime. When this number falls below 2, the overall population eventually falls.
In this episode of More or Less, we look at the fertility estimates for one country – Argentina. The graph of the real and predicted fertility rate for that country looks quite strange.
The collected data – that covers up to the present day – shows a fertility rate that’s falling fast. But the predicted rate for the future immediately levels out.
The strangeness has led some people to think that the UN might be underestimating the current fall in global fertility.
To explain what’s going on we speak to Patrick Gerland, who runs the population estimates team in the United Nations Population Division.
Presenter / producer: Tom Colls
Production co-ordinator: Brenda Brown
Sound mix: Sue Maillot
Editor: Richard Vadon
More shows like More or Less
View all
Global News Podcast
7,709 Listeners
Business Daily
531 Listeners
Newshour
1,046 Listeners
World Business Report
288 Listeners
In Our Time
5,428 Listeners
Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4
250 Listeners
The Infinite Monkey Cage
1,931 Listeners
The Bottom Line
35 Listeners
Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast
346 Listeners
BBC Inside Science
431 Listeners
Science Weekly
417 Listeners
Curious Cases
827 Listeners
The Life Scientific
247 Listeners
Science In Action
349 Listeners
The Briefing Room
73 Listeners
CrowdScience
480 Listeners
Evil Genius with Russell Kane
360 Listeners
Have You Heard George's Podcast?
227 Listeners
Sliced Bread
141 Listeners
Elis James and John Robins
321 Listeners
You're Dead to Me
3,192 Listeners
Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford
5,161 Listeners
Sport's Strangest Crimes
63 Listeners
Uncanny
820 Listeners
Dua Lipa: At Your Service
998 Listeners
The Rest Is Politics
3,091 Listeners
Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley
494 Listeners
Believe in Magic
613 Listeners
Uncharted with Hannah Fry
115 Listeners
The Global Story
288 Listeners
Miss Me?
268 Listeners
The History Podcast
64 Listeners
Rory Stewart: The Long History of...
82 Listeners
Havana Helmet Club
3 Listeners