The link between poverty and overpopulation has caused numerous debates for many years. Arguments have emerged that poverty facilitates population growth. Poor communities have little access to quality education; therefore, they lack the exposure to family planning practices. Overpopulation has been attributed to poverty with the argument that high population growth increases competition for the limited job opportunities and overexploitation of resources. This can be explained further by the neo-Malthusian theory-the available resources on the earth become scarce when the population growth is not controlled. The growth of food production is slightly slower than the growth of population. Population control is necessary for sustainability.
Majority of poor families have many children. To them children are viewed as economic assets who perform laborious jobs for the family to supplement their income. Furthermore, parents bear the hope that their children will become successful and take care of their families. The infant mortality rate in poor families is high and, therefore, need to bear more children leads to more pregnancies and births. A report by the WHO indicated that the fear that a child may die, and the child’s actual death increases fertility. A society’s economic development may reach a point where children present as economic burdens. In the United States, families adopted the two-children per family system when; rates of infant mortality dropped, more women acquired jobs outside their homes, and the country’s economy became industrial.
Poverty and overpopulation depend on the status of women in a society. The empowerment of women through education, financial independence and social freedoms slows down population growth compared to societies where women are deprived of such opportunities. The women whose primary role is the bearing and caring of children present with a low social and economic status in their society. It has been indicated that more educated women with better job opportunities have lower fertility than women with no education. Other studies have shown that, despite the presence of family planning programs and methods of birth control, most families are raise the number of children they desire. Educational empowerment will enable women to pursue well-paying jobs to supplement their families’ income. This will make them delay or avoid pregnancies, which requires a lot of time. Societies that promote the empowerment of women encourage more women to pursue the available opportunities. This may play a role in the reduction of population growth.
Neo-Malthusian theory explains the relationship between overpopulation and poverty. Thomas Malthus explained that while human population increases in a geometrical manner, the production of food increases in an arithmetic manner. When the food available cannot meet the demand, famine and poverty is experienced in a community. He further explained that a reduction in fertility rate was necessary to control population. From the neo-Malthusian theory, it is deducible that overpopulation stretches the agricultural needs of a limited population. Furthermore, it may cause competition, which leads to the depletion of the available resources. It is necessary to mention that the critics of the neo-Malthusian theory argue that food insecurity is caused by uneven distribution and not inadequate food production.
Although theories have been created linking overpopulation to poverty, non has been proven to show the connection. Different factors have; however, been discussed to partially explain how overpopulation causes poverty and vice-versa. More research should be done to develop a model that fully outlines the link between poverty and overpopulation.
Works Cited
Global Issues. Poverty and population growth: lessons from our own past. 15 May 2006.
