2009 World Population Data Sheet Webcast: As World Population Approaches 7 Billion, the Youth Population Is More and More Concentrated in Africa and Asia
PRB's 2009 World Population Data Sheet was released at a press briefing at the National Press Club, in Washington, DC, on Aug. 12, 2009. This year's theme is children and youth. (August 2009)

2009 World Population Data Sheet
 Global population numbers are on track to reach 7 billion in 2011, just 12 years after reaching 6 billion in 1999. Virtually all of the growth is in developing countries. And the growth of the world’s youth population (ages 15 to 24) is shifting into the poorest of those countries. The Population Reference Bureau's 2009 World Population Data Sheet and its summary report offer detailed information about country, regional, and global population patterns. (August 2009)

World Population Highlights: Key Findings From PRB's 2009 World Population Data Sheet
Population change will shape the prospects of regions and countries over the next half century. Future population growth will be almost entirely in the developing world, with the fastest growth in the poorest countries and regions. This Population Bulletin is a companion to PRB's 2009 World Population Data Sheet and provides data and analysis on world population trends, youth, gender, and the environment. (August 2009)

Birth Spacing and Childhood Undernutrition
One factor often overlooked when considering strategies to reduce undernutrition is birth spacing, the time interval between births. According to a recent study published in Maternal and Child Nutrition, birth spacing plays an important role in nutritional status among children under five years of age, with shorter birth intervals increasing the risk of both stunting and underweight. (March 2009)

Brazil's Fertility Falls Below Two-Child Average
Recent population estimates from Brazil's national statistical office (IBGE) peg the national fertility rate at just 1.9 lifetime children per woman in 2007, lower than previous rates estimated by the UN, the U.S. Census Bureau, PRB, and other international organizations that estimate population measures. Notably, this new estimate is below the long-term replacement fertility rate of 2.1 children per woman—and below the 2.1 estimated for the United States in 2007. (February 2009)

Family Planning Use in Central America: Closing the Equity Gap
The overall contraceptive prevalence among women in union has increased in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua in the past two decades, according to the latest CDC report, Reproductive, Maternal and Child Health in Central America: Health Equity Trends. With the exception of Guatemala, the gap in contraceptive use between the poorest and wealthiest segments of the population has also decreased. Ensuring equitable access is important in improving maternal and child health, especially among the poor because they are often unaware of the benefits and live in areas where services are unavailable. (February 2009)

2008 World Population Data Sheet Webcast
PRB's 2008 World Population Data Sheet was released at a press briefing at the National Press Club, in Washington, DC, on Aug. 19, 2008. This year's theme: "Global Demographic Divide Widens." (August 2008)

World Population Highlights: Key Findings From PRB's 2008 World Population Data Sheet (PDF: 854KB)
This Population Bulletin is the companion report to PRB's 2008 World Population Data Sheet. The Bulletin highlights key findings from the data sheet on: world population trends, nutrition, environment, HIV/AIDS, urbanization, and migration. (BUL63.3, September 2008)

2008 World Population Data Sheet

  PRB's 2008 World Population Data Sheet contains the latest population estimates, projections, and other key indicators for more than 200 countries, including births, deaths, natural increase, infant mortality, life expectancy, urban population, HIV/AIDS prevalence, contraceptive use, GNI PPP per capita, and population per square kilometer. New for the 2008 Data Sheet are data on percent of population in urban areas of 750,000 or more; lifetime risk of maternal death; percent of population undernourished; number of vehicles per 1,000 population; and percent of population with access to an improved drinking water source. (August 2008) 

Forest Conservation and Population Growth Among Indigenous Peoples of the Amazon
Fertility has declined significantly throughout the developing world, and in Latin America total fertility rates have declined by 50 percent over the last three decades, from 5.0 births per woman in 1970 to only 2.5 today. The successes in Latin America however, mask a great deal of regional variation. In countries such as Bolivia, Guatemala, and Haiti, total fertility rates are still nearly 4.0 or higher. Furthermore, in these countries, between 22 percent and 32 percent of women who do not desire another child or want to space their births still have no access to family planning services. Among those with the most limited access to basic reproductive health services are people living in the poorest and most remote communities—on the frontiers of lowland tropical forests like the Amazon and indigenous people living far beyond forest frontiers. (August 2008)