Africa's Population "Emergency"

Sub-Saharan Africa is headed for a "population emergency" according to a new French analysis of demographic trends.

The population of the continent south of the Sahara, decimated by the slave trade and colonization, stood at 100 million in 1900, according to the study by Centre Population et Developpement. It had grown more than seven-fold to 770 million by 2005. By 2050, it will grow by as much as 2.6 times above that level, to 2 billion. The population of the entire world today is 6.6 billion.

In 1960, one African city had 1 million residents. Now, 40 do, and the rural exodus is continuing at such a pace that already strained cities are struggling to provide services, like health care, and infrastructure, like sewage treatment, enough to support the population growth.

Only six nations had economic growth above 7% – the rate believed needed to support population growth of this magnitude. The human toll of such poverty would be steep, and many environmental advocates warn that unique wildlife and landscapes cannot be protected over the long term unless people's lives are first made secure and relatively prosperous.

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