The Contemporary World

John Patrick Habacon

College of Arts and Sciences
 Session Topics:
• Global Demography
• Globalization and Migration
Global Demography
• Demography is the study of human
population
Focuses on the following:
- Change in population size
- Change in the composition of the
population
- Change in the distribution of
population in space
 Global Demography
• 5 Demographic Processes:

Fertility Marriage Mortality

 Global Demography
• 5 Demographic Processes:

Migration Social Mobility

The Theory of Demographic Transition
• The demographic transition refers to the process of progressive
changes in fertility, mortality and natural increase as social and
economic development of countries.
• “Demographic transition refers to a population cycle that
begins with a fall in the death rate, continues with a phase of
rapid population growth and concludes with a decline in the
birth rate”-E.G. Dolan.
 Theory of Demographic Transition
• Stage I is characterised by high birth rate, death rate and low rate of
population growth.
• Stage II is characterised by high and stationary birth rate, rapidly
declining death rate and very rapid increase in population.
• Stage III is characterised by a falling birth rate, low and stationary death
rate and rapidly rising population.
• Stage IV is characterised by low birth rate and low death rate with
stationary population at a low level.
Demographic Transition Theory
 Global Demography
• Factors affecting demographic transition:
1. Man-made disasters
2. Emergence of new deadly diseases (e.g. HIV, Ebola, H1N1,
SARS)
3. Rising cost of health care system
4. Demographic aging
 Key Population Statistics
The 2021 Data Sheet identifies key demographic findings around the world, including:

● The world population is projected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050, an increase of more than 24%
from the current 2020 population of 7.8 billion.
● The global total fertility rate (lifetime number of births per woman) is 2.3, which is above
replacement-level (2.1 births per woman) but lower than it was in 1990 (3.2)
● Western Europe and Southern Europe have the largest shares of people ages 65 years and
older (21%), while sub-Saharan Africa has the smallest share (3%).
● The population of 25 countries is expected to at least double between 2020 and 2050. Angola,
Benin, and Niger are projected see a population increase of 150% or more.
● In 12 countries and territories, at least 50% of the population lives in cities of 1 million or more
residents, including the Republic of the Congo (63%), Australia (62%), and Israel (61%).

Source: 2021 World Population Data Sheet https://interactives.prb.org/2021-wpds/data-sheet-download/

Globalization and Migration
Since the earliest times, humanity has been on the move.

Some people move in search of work or economic

opportunities, to join family, or to study. Others move to
escape conflict, persecution, terrorism, or human rights
violations.

Still others move in response to the adverse effects of

climate change, natural disasters, or other environmental
factors.
 Globalization and Migration
• Definition of Terms:
- Country of Origin – where a migrant was born; usually somewhere in
the “developing” world.
- Country of Destination – where a migrant moves to; usually somewhere
in the “developed” world.
- Migrant – citizen who leaves his/her country of birth to work or reside
in another country
- Diaspora – movement of a community of migrants bound by a common
cultural heritage and/or home country
 Globalization and Migration
• Definition of Terms:
Immigration – international movement of people into a destination
country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess
citizenship in order to settle or reside there (think come in)
Emigrants – is the act of leaving a resident country or place of
residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (think exit)
Net migration rate – difference between the number of immigrants
and the number of emigrants
• Why do people choose to migrate?
The Push-Pull Theory – says that some
people move because they are pushed
out of their former location, whereas
others move because they have been
pulled or attracted to someplace else.
• Push factors – stress or strain
• Pull factors – attractive alternative
‘Push’ and ‘pull’ factors
influencing health
workforce migration (Mamiya, K.
T., John, C., Alnahar, S. A., Bader, L., & Bates, I.,
2020)
The Dual Labor Market Theory
- Posits that international migration
results from a permanent demand for
foreign labor among developed countries
(foreign workers willing to work for low
wages)
- Leads to the development of a dual-
economy characterized by the coexistence
of a (1) capital-intensive primary sector
and (2) labor-intensive secondary sector,
 Globalization and Migration
The Global City
• Large diverse cities attracting people, material. And cultural
products from all over the world.
- Cosmopolitanism; the global city’s natives encounter and
engage daily with a mixture of immigrants and visitors.
- Results to cosmopolitan consumption and work culture, global
networking, and “glocal” transnational community relations”
 Globalization and Migration
• Drivers for international migration:
1. Inequality and uneven development globally
2. Demographic change
3. Conflict and security
 Globalization and Migration
• Drivers for International
Migration:
Inequality and uneven development
globally - most popular migration
corridors clearly lead from poorer
to wealthier countries, as most of
the people migrating are doing so
in order to seek a better life.
Globalization and Migration
• Drivers for International Migration:
Demographic change
- Some countries and regions in the world have
high birth rates and young populations, posing
increasing challenges for some countries in
feeding, educating, housing and providing
employment opportunities for expanding
numbers of people.
- Meanwhile other countries and regions faced
with rapidly ageing populations have a need to
replace retiring members of their workforces
and active contributors to their economies.
 Globalization and Migration
• Drivers for International Migration:
Conflict and security
- Conflict, disasters, and lack of
security are increasingly displacing
populations.
- More people had been uprooted by
war, violence and persecution (e.g.
refugees and internally displaced
persons (IDPs)