Regina Vera L.

Oracion

BEED 1

NIGERIA

Overpopulation is a situation whereby, people living in an environment exceed the number of resources
available to meet their needs. Overpopulation is one of the biggest problems we have here in Nigeria. It is
important to note that besides social well-being, the economic prosperity of a nation is dependent on its
population growth rate. Demographically, Nigeria is running so fast that she has to stand still economically.

Developing nations face the problem of overpopulation more than developed countries, but it affects
most of the earth as of now. When we are talking about overpopulation, we should first understand it?s causes.

Thus, the following are possible causes of overpopulation:

 Better Medical Facilities : Illnesses that had claimed thousands of lives till now were cured because of
the invention of vaccines. People now live longer because of better medical facilities available to them.
 Migration: People move to better environments where best facilities are available in terms of, education,
security, medicals, and employment.
 Lack of Family Planning: Most developing nations have a large number of people who are illiterate, and
have little or no knowledge of family planning. Thereby, getting their children married at an early age
and increasing their chances of producing more kids.

The following are the effects of these causes of overpopulation on the economy:

 Depletion of Natural Resources

 Degradation of the environment
 A rise in unemployment rate
 A high cost of living, brain drain, etc.

After considering the causes and effects of overpopulation, let us look at some possible solutions to reduce
them.

 Better Education: Educating the masses helps them understand the need to have two or three children at
the most. Also, by educating the people, they learn about various safe sex techniques and contraceptives
methods available to avoid unwanted pregnancy.
 Family Planning Awareness: Raising awareness among people regarding family planning is very
important. Letting them know about serious after effects of overpopulation can help control the rate of
population growth.
 Knowledge of Sex Education: Communicating sex education to young kids at the elementary level is
key. By doing so, they learn the right way and not from their peers or through the internet.

In conclusion, Africa’s population is increasing and it’s not showing any signs of slowing down. The only
probable solution is to encourage a culture of learning and good education.
Overpopulation in Nigeria.

Nigeria is the country with rapidly growing amount of population. Learn what effects it can produce for the
nation and for you personally.

Is population growth in Nigeria a good or a bad thing? What consequences does it have? What are main effects
of fast population growth for people of the country? Let?s find out all the answers right now.

What is Nigeria population growth rate?

This problem is one of major for many countries and Nigeria is not an exception. Thus, population growth in
Nigeria is very fast and influences different spheres of people?s lives. To understand the effects of
overpopulation, it is also essential to know its reasons. Let?s observe the most common ones:

Increased birth rate. Too many children are being born in this country. Sometimes it is caused by poor medical
assistance, lack of education, or unawareness of contraception. Fact is that the poorer family is, the more kids
they might have.

Immigration. Lots of people come to Nigeria. Besides, there are vulnerable areas, which are devastated or
dangerous. People have to leave them and move to other places. That?s why some better developed and safe
cities have become overpopulated.

Increase in birth rate. Along with underdeveloped areas, some other Nigerian cities are well-developed. The
medicine moves forward and special infertility treatment is applied. That?s why more and more women are able
to get pregnant.

Cultural influence. Nowadays it is possible to have several wives in Nigeria. Each woman may give birth to at
least one child, while all of them have just one father. It also adds to the population growth. Early marriage is
another factor.

Decreased death rate. It is due to medical advances as well. Plenty of former incurable diseases might be
successfully treated today. Besides, lots of preventive measures have been worked out.

Lack of education. In many areas, people do not have access to proper sexual education. Thus, they know little
about contraception methods and give birth to many kids.

Nowadays there are about 190 million people in Nigeria. Their number keeps growing every year. It is 2.48% of
the world population, and it is ranked the 7th in the UN list. Nigeria population growth rate 2015 is more than
2.7%.
Regina Vera L. Oracion

BEED 1

NIGERIA

On the public perception of overpopulation in Nigeria, there seems to be a common misconception: that
our country is not overpopulated; Most of us refuse to believe that compared to other countries of the world,
Nigeria is overpopulated. To the Nigerians who have taken in to this trending idea, here’s a wake-up call: It is.
Our country is not only over-populated, it is hyper-populated. How else can a country of over 170 million
people living within considerably less than one million square kilometers of land— 923,768 sq km to be exact
—be explained?
The thesis of this argument argues that compared to all the other countries of the world, Nigeria’s
population simply cannot sustain itself: monetarily, economically, socio-commercially and otherwise. This
thesis also argues that Nigeria’s overpopulation is a major cause of its underdevelopment.
Quite honestly, Nigeria is one of the most grossly overpopulated countries in the world. Now, I will not
waste your time with pointlessly fancy terminology and complicated sentences, (which also seems to be the
trend with Nigerians writing on the subject) I’ll simply go straight to the point with logical reasons, data, and
empirical evidence. We’ll start with fig. 1.1:

World World Land Mass (in square

Country Population
Rank (land mass) Rank (in pop.) kilometers)[i]

1 9 Russia 138,082,178 17, 098, 242

2 36 Canada 34,206,710 9,984,670
3 3 The United States 313,847,465 9,826,675
4 1 China 1,343,239,923 9,5,96,961
5 5 Brazil 205,716,890 8,514,877
24 68 *Mali 14,533,511 1,240,192
32 7 Nigeria 170,123,740 923,768
7 2 India 1,205,073,612 3,287,400
15 4 Indonesia 248,216,193 1,904,569
36 6 Pakistan 190,291,129 796,095
*Fig. 1.1[ii]
This data shows comparisons between the largest countries of the world; large in terms of land mass,
and also population. Nigeria’s population has successfully surpassed that of Russia, the country that occupies
the largest amount of land on earth. Put in scale, our entire population of over 170 million resides in
significantly less than the area occupied by two states in the U.S.: California and Texas[iii]. Yes people, our
entire populace is compressed into (more than 2,000 sq km less) area occupied by about 60 million Americans.
Opposing opinions might argue that Nigeria, an African country, is being compared to the U.S., a
western state. So let’s put this in context: Mali. Africa’s largest country, with a total land mass of over 1.2
million sq km, is currently occupied by less than 15 million people. In Nigerian terms, Lagos!
Our land is clearly overpopulated.  Now other opinions might maintain that Nigeria is doing just fine
with its population; people can survive with the country’s resources (from oil). So we’ll compare it to another
large country in with oil: Saudi Arabia. Both countries’ oil boom took place at about the same time, in the
1970s. The current GDP (purchasing power parity) per capita of citizens living in Saudi Arabia is $24,000 while
that of Nigeria is $2,600. And you can blame the considerable dearth in the financial wealth of the country on
overpopulation.
And how about the effects of overpopulation?
The Economy Resources are limited. They will always be. An increased population puts stress on
already limited resources. Basic economics.
Development Relative to its resources, Nigeria is underdeveloped. The increasing amount of
people place higher demand on the country’s underdeveloped state, heightening its
underdevelopment. Overpopulation negatively affects development.
Unemployment Because Nigeria is overpopulated, there are limited resources, and it is also
underdeveloped, an excessive amount of people are unemployed. Many of them will
not be employed, because our economic infrastructure cannot support our entire
people. Even oil money cannot solve this.
Rural-Urban Our people move to the urban areas for employment, most remain unemployed, but
Imbalance remain in the rural areas, further populating overpopulated cities, putting tension on
city resources and the environment.
The Environment Every person on the planet takes up space. Every living person produces waste
(carbon, and all) that causes pollution of water systems (Lagos floods), terrestrial
lands (your local market), wildlife space, and also endangers wildlife.
Socio-economic Issues High crime rates, religious wars, armed robberies, gang violence, high death rates,
and much more. These problems arise from various issues, a prominent one being
overpopulation.
Health Overpopulation also negatively affects our health. More people produce more waste,
disease and infectious outbreaks spread more easily and are harder to curtail
Politics & Governance Believe it or not, overpopulation has negative effects on politics. Governing an
overpopulated country is tough work. The economy is stretched beyond belief, civil
and religious wars break out, and the government could essentially fail. *Ahem*
Our country. Too close for comfort?
Now honestly, the analysis could go on, but we can no longer continue to be in denial. Our country is
well overpopulated, and we are suffering the effects of it. A few might look at their personal situations and
think: “Well, people might say we’re overpopulated, but we aren’t. I’m not struggling for space with people
when I walk on the streets,” but as you go through your daily life, just think about it: Think about how you
virtually have to play twister when sitting in a bus; think about how long you have to wait in line at banks and
offices, and even in private hospitals! Think about how you or your cousin or friend has had to stand outside a
university hall to listen to lectures. That, my friend, is overpopulation. And it affects every one of us. Problem
is, we don’t even know the difference between overpopulation and precise population, because we’ve never
actually lived in a Nigeria that’s been precisely populated! Since our independence in the 1960s (at about 60
million people) our country has been the most populated African country. We were, always have been, and
always will be an overpopulated nation, (to the detriment of our society) if we keep at it. Nigeria’s population
simply cannot sustain itself.
Understandably, the major (and probably most convincing) argument against the fact that Nigeria is
overpopulated is that the country is underdeveloped. Other opinions argue that once Nigeria is developed, it will
be able to meet the needs of all its citizens. This isn’t quite true. Proponents of that argument need to understand
this: overpopulation is a major cause of underdevelopment to Nigeria, particularly socio-economically and
politically. As basic theories in economics explain, resources are and always will be scarce. Too many people
clamoring for scarce resources further limits them, and prevents them from being distributed effectively. Our
government will not be able to effectively distribute resources if the country is overpopulated and working
below the balance; but placing the blame on our government—stating that it is ineffective and corrupt and
rotten—(which is, in effect, true) does not change the fact that our country is overpopulated, and an
overpopulated country will only increase national issues.
According to Geoffrey D. Dabelko of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars,
Current global population growth rates and consumption patterns are not environmentally sustainable because
rapid population growth strains resources and contributes to environmental degradation. Integrated population
and environment approaches allow governments to effectively address these at both a macro and micro level.
Our government has issues, but so does our social perception of the situation, with regard to
overpopulation. Nigeria will be a much better place with a few less citizens clamoring for resources. The needs
of more children would be met, equal education could be a possibility, and we could possibly live up to the
potential of our vast human resources.
So how can we curb this population issue? First of all, we have to get real about the situation; next, we
have to make sure that our citizens are making a conscious effort to limit the strain overpopulation places on our
society and resources. It takes only common sense to understand that every action has a consequence. We all
need to think about what we’re doing here. Children are expensive and living is expensive. Every living person
will generate expenses to the state and to society: monetarily, economically, socio-commercially and otherwise.
Now we don’t need to pull a ‘China’ and regulate the number of births per couple, but we need to understand
the responsibility behind every child born as (and to) a Nigerian. Human activity causes overpopulation, and we
need to take responsibility for our actions, or at least, control them.
And I’m not the only one that argues this. This article published just recently in The Guardian points out
that Nigeria’s fertility rate is too high and nothing is being done to curb it. Another article argues that Nigeria’s
conflicts can be linked to climate change, a growing burden on our already limited land and resources.
For this reason, Nigeria, we need to control our population! Let’s stop blaming God for creating too
many kids! Nigerian adults need to come to terms with the fact that we have caused these problems (politicians
and peasants alike) and we can do something to curb it (not necessarily stop it all together). Let’s start with
tackling teen pregnancy and wedlock births, and let’s realize the fact that children cost a lot of money (to their
parents and to society).
Finally, let us make better efforts to control our population growth rate, reconcile with reality and move
our country forward.