Population Dynamics Highlighted at Global Summit on Least Developed Countries

ISTANBUL — “This is probably the last conference we will hold before our world reaches its significant milestone that is the birth of the 7 billionth baby later this year,” said UNFPA Executive Director Babatunde Osotimehin while releasing a blueprint that could help poor countries transform their bursting populations into the rich human capital that could free them from poverty. He was speaking at a press conference during the United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC-IV) that is taking place here this week.

The report released today, Population Dynamics in the Least Developed Countries: Challenges and Opportunities for Development and Poverty Reduction, says that demographic analysis can help governments to target investments to meet the needs of current and future generations. Investments in infrastructure and employment will yield high returns if they are matched by investments in people’s education, skills and health, according to the report. This is especially important for young people in the LDCs, where about 60 per cent of the population is under the age of 25.

Dr. Osotimehin added that 855 million people were already living in the world’s least developed countries, and the population of those countries is expected to nearly double and increase to 1.67 billion between now and 2050. The result, he said, would be a large and growing youth population, adding that “just as parents did their best to provide for their children, governments also need to invest in people so that they can reach their full potential.”

The report found that while the largest share of the LDCs population continued to live in rural areas, a rapidly increasing proportion of their population now lives in urban centres. As a consequence, Dr. Osotimehin warned, the urban population in LDCs will rise by around 116 million over the next decade, while the rural population will increase to 88 million. By 2050, he said, the number of city dwellers in the LDCs will approach 1 billion.

Every ten years since 1981, world leaders have gathered to discuss measures that would respond to the special needs of the poorest countries. This week, more than 50 heads of state and government are meeting in Istanbul with representatives of civil society, private sector, non-governmental organizations and others from around the world to assess the results of the action plan adopted at the last LDC conference (Brussels, 2001), and agree on new measures and strategies to boost these countries’ development during the next decade.

This week, Dr. Osotimehin will also join representatives from the International Labour Organization and other government officials to discuss the importance of integrating population dynamics into development and poverty reduction strategies of the LDCs.

The UNFPA Executive Director will also attend the Regional Conference on Investing in Youth: Path to Accelerated Development, which will include representatives of more than 100 non-governmental organizations and youth groups from countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia.