UN Population Division says Nigeria is one of the most fertile nations on earth as its men outnumber women

NIGERIA has been identified as one of the most fertile nations on earth by the United Nations Population Division after a recent survey revealed that it is one of the few nations on earth where males outnumber females.

In the survey, which estimated that the current global population stands at about 7.7bn, Nigeria was identified as one of the most fertile nations in the world that enjoyed significant growth. This report added that Nigeria is still projected to become the third most populous country nation on earth as from 2050 with a population of 773m people by the end of the century.

It added: “Fertility in Nigerian women is equal to or greater than four live births per woman, making Nigeria one of the most fertile countries in the world. The population of Africa has risen by over 32m in the past year, raising the numbers to over 1.308bn people on the continent.

 “The data also shows that males outnumber females in Nigeria and the world as a whole, negating the popular belief that women outnumber men in the West African country. Nigeria is estimated to be at 200,964,000 as of mid-year 2019, with 99,132,000m females and 101,832,000 males, while in the globe, there are an estimated 3,889,035,000 males and 3,824,434,000 females.

“The world’s population is projected to grow from 7.7bn in 2019 to 8.5bn in 2030 and to 9.7bn in 2050 and to 10.9bn in 2100, while the population of sub-Saharan Africa is projected to double by 2050. Other regions will see varying rates of increase between 2019 and 2050 with Oceania excluding Australia/New Zealand enjoying 56%, Northern Africa and Western Asia 46%, Australia/New Zealand 28%, Central and Southern Asia 25%, Latin America and the Caribbean18%, Eastern and South-Eastern Asia 3% and Europe and Northern America 2%."

In addition the UN also revealed that the populations of both Pakistan and Nigeria more than doubled in size between 1990 and 2019, with Pakistan moving up in rank from the eighth to the fifth position and Nigeria from the 10th to the seventh position. By 2010, only China and India are projected to have larget populations than Nigeria.

“After this re-ordering between 2019 and 2050, the ranking of the five largest countries is projected to be preserved through the end of the century, when India could remain the world’s most populous country with nearly 1.5bn inhabitants. It will be followed by China with just under 1.1bn, Nigeria with 733m, the US with 434m and Pakistan with 403m inhabitants,” the report added.