<h1 class="ql-align-center"><strong style="color: rgb(230, 0, 0);">State of World Population Report 2023</strong></h1><p class="ql-align-center"><br></p><h3><strong>Context&nbsp;</strong></h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1">India is now the most populous country in the world, having overtaken <strong>China in population, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) said in its State of World Population (SOWP) report, ‘8 Billion Lives, Infinite Possibilities’,</strong> released on April 19.&nbsp;</li><li class="ql-indent-1">In November 2022, the UN had announced that the world’s population had crossed the 8 billion mark.</li></ul><h3><strong>About&nbsp;</strong></h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1">The UNFPA has said the population of the world is 8,045 million, of which the largest share (65%) is of people between the ages of 15 and 64 years, followed by those in the 10-24 years group (24%).&nbsp;</li><li class="ql-indent-1">10 percent of the population is above 65 years of age.</li><li class="ql-indent-1">According to the UN’s 2022 report, the world’s two most populous regions are Eastern and South-Eastern Asia, with 2.3 billion people, representing 29 per cent of the global population; and Central and Southern Asia, with 2.1 billion (26 per cent).&nbsp;</li><li class="ql-indent-1"><strong>China and India accounted for the largest populations in these regions, with more than 1.4 billion each in 2022.</strong></li><li class="ql-indent-1">Central and Southern Asia is expected to become the most populous region in the world by 2037.</li></ul><h3><strong>Earlier UN reports had said that the population growth in South Asia will begin to decline before 2100.&nbsp;</strong></h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1">The latest UN projections suggest that the global population could grow to around 8.5 billion in 2030, 9.7 billion in 2050 and 10.4 billion in 2100.</li><li class="ql-indent-1">This is largely due to declining fertility; around two thirds of people live in a country or area with a total fertility rate at or below 2.1 children per woman (widely considered the “replacement fertility” rate, also called “zero-growth fertility” rate).&nbsp;</li><li class="ql-indent-1">In 1950 the global fertility rate stood at 5.</li></ul><h3><strong>India’s Population&nbsp;</strong></h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1">The UN report states that India now has 1,428.6 million people and is the most populous country in the world, outstripping China’s population.</li><li class="ql-indent-1">As much as 68% of India’s population belongs to the 15-64 years category, and 26% in the 10-24 years group, making India one of the youngest countries in the world.</li><li class="ql-indent-1">However, the fertility rate in India has been steadily dropping. <strong>The National Family Health 5 Survey (2019-21)</strong> found that India attained a <strong>Total Fertility Rate of 2.0</strong> for the first time, less than the replacement level of 2.1, falling from 2.2 in NFHS 4 (2015-16).</li><li class="ql-indent-1">Life expectancy for men in India is the same as the global life expectancy of 71 years, while it is marginally lower for women at 74 years.</li></ul><h3><strong>United Nations Population Fund</strong></h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1">It is a subsidiary organ of the <strong>UN General Assembly </strong>and works as a sexual and reproductive health agency.</li><li class="ql-indent-1">The <strong>UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)</strong> establishes its mandate.</li></ul><h3><strong>Establishment:</strong></h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1">It was established as a trust fund in 1967 and began operations in 1969.</li><li class="ql-indent-1">In 1987, it was officially renamed the United Nations Population Fund but the original abbreviation, <strong>‘UNFPA’ for the United Nations Fund for Population Activities was retained.</strong></li></ul><h3><strong>Objective:</strong></h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1">UNFPA works directly to tackle <strong>Sustainable Development Goals on health (SDG3)</strong>, education (SDG4) and gender equality (SDG5).</li></ul><h3><strong>Funding:</strong></h3><ul><li class="ql-indent-1">UNFPA is not supported by the UN budget, instead, it is entirely supported by voluntary contributions of donor governments, intergovernmental organizations, the private sector, foundations and individuals.</li></ul><p class="ql-align-center"><br></p><p class="ql-align-center"><br></p><h1 class="ql-align-center"><strong>PRELIMS NOTES:</strong><a href="https://www.sunyaias.com/subscription-details/prelims-2023-sunya-notes-current-affairs" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 204);"><strong>CLICK HERE</strong></a></h1><p><br></p>