Are you aware of the utmost importance of the overpopulation problem which has a deep impact on human’s future and next generations?
Overpopulation can be defined as the size of a population with which a country or a region cannot cope in terms of meeting the needs or for which a country or a region employs for the overall welfare.
Overpopulation is a failure of proper and efficient planning at the social, economic and political level. It affects countries’ welfare negatively.
There are many reasons for overpopulation. Some stem from human-made factors and some are due to natural factors.
Human-made factors range from poor development planning capabilities, violence, wars, terrorism, environmental pollution, and so on. Natural factors can be stated as climate change, natural disasters, etc.
Before elaborating more on the subject matter, we individually or collectively should know that the United Nations organization has set forward 17 Sustainable Development Goals for everyone on the planet to eradicate a number of problems that the world has been experiencing. If countries or relevant responsible people follow through with these goals, many problems including overpopulation can be overcome.
If not addressed properly, overpopulation can cause enormous problems in many ways. These are;
– Poverty
Due to overpopulation, resources will not be enough for all people such as energy, food, clean water, land, and healthcare.
– Pollution
As the population increases pollution also increases. Due to overpopulation, there will be a lot of vehicles that emit carbon and thus cause air pollution. Water pollution is another result of overpopulation as well. For instance, disposing of plastics and other waste materials in water causes water pollution.
– Unemployment
Unemployment is a result of a large number of people in a country. Through the increased number of people, there will be not enough jobs.
– Lack of Healthcare
As the population increases, the per capita health service decreases.
Among others, sustainable development goals which directly address the problem of overpopulation are; sustainable cities and communities, no poverty, decent work, and economic growth, reduced inequalities, climate action, industry, innovation and infrastructure, clean water, and sanitation. Therefore, we as the citizens of the world and individuals and governments with a sense of responsibility have to act in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.