8 Billion People: A New Milestone for Humanity

As of November 15th, 2022, there are 8 billion human souls spinning around the sun. It only took 12 years for the population to grow from 7 billion to 8 billion, meaning that humans are still rapidly reproducing. The world’s average growth rate is hovering around an increase of .83% per year. However, not every country has the same population growth rate; countries such as Nigeria, Pakistan, and Bangladesh lead the world in growth rates. China and Russia, despite having very large populations, have zero growth rates. 

This growth in human population can be attributed to the huge increase in life expectancy over the last few centuries. Since the 1800s, global life expectancy has risen from 29 years to 73 years. The five healthiest countries in the world, in terms of their citizen’s expected longevity, are Spain, Italy, Iceland, Japan, and Switzerland. Countries such as South Sudan, Somalia, and Chad have the lowest life expectancy largely caused by a high infant mortality rate. Africa is the fastest growing continent, and Sub-Saharan Africa is expected to double in population size by 2050. Europe’s population will continue to decline, with many Slavic countries dropping 15% in population by the same year.