Story at a glance

• A new report from the United Nations states the global population will reach 8 billion by November. 
• The world’s population is expected to reach 8.5 billion by 2030 and 9.7 billion by 2050. 
• Next year, India is predicted to beat China for most populated country on Earth, the report states. 

The global population is projected to reach 8 billion by mid-November, according to a United Nations report released Monday.  

“This is an occasion to celebrate our diversity, recognize our common humanity, and marvel at advancements in health that have extended lifespans and dramatically reduced maternal and child mortality rates,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres in a statement.  

“At the same time, it is a reminder of our shared responsibility to care for our planet and a moment to reflect on where we still fall short of our commitments to one another.”  

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In World Population Prospects 2022, the U.N. also predicts India will surpass China as the world’s most populous country by 2023. 

Report crafters also predict the world’s population will reach 8.5 billion by 2030 and 9.7 billion by 2050, with eight countries accounting for half of the globe’s projected population increase: Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Congo, the Philippines and the United Republic of Tanzania. 

The U.N. expects the planet’s population to peak at 10.4 billion during the 1080s and stagnate at that level until 2100.  

Worldwide population growth is in part linked to increasing life expectancy. In 2019, global life expectancy reached 72.8 years, a spike of almost 9 years since the 1990s. Life expectancy is expected to shoot up to 77.2 years by 2050, according to the report.  

But while the global population continues to rise, the planet’s population rate of growth is not what it used to be.  

In 2020, global population growth fell under 1 percent for the first time since 1950 according to the report, with the decline in part connected to decreasing birth rates in dozens of countries.  

In 2021, the worldwide average fertility rate was 2.3 births per every woman over her lifetime, a drop of 5 births per woman since 1950, the report states. 

Today, two-thirds of humanity live in a part of the world where women are giving birth to fewer than 2.1 children in their lifetime.