The United Nations predicted in 2015 that the global population will hit 11 billion by the end of the century.
Last year, the UN revised those estimates, but the estimates it had come up with were still well over 10 billion. These frequent forecasts from the UN have until now been the status quo.
There have been some indications that a population plateau exists, but recent research published by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) in The Lancet suggests that the number of people on this planet may gradually start to shrink well before the year 2100.
IHME paints a different image, by contrast. Currently, it expects the population to peak at 9.7 billion in 2064. There will be 8.8 billion people in 2100 following this trajectory, about 2 billion less than previously assumed.
Behind these differences are numerous demographic factors: higher life expectancies, migration rates , and lower fertility rates. Independent drivers, including contraceptive coverage and higher educational attainment, were also considered for this last aspect.
A changing age structure is a key element of this transformation as well. By 2100, more than a fifth of the population, or about $2.37 billion, would be 65 years and older.
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