This document provides information about population growth rates in less developed countries (LDCs) and developed countries (DCs). It discusses the high population growth rates in LDCs due to factors like early marriage, high child mortality rates, lack of family planning education, and religious beliefs. This leads to issues like overcrowding, food shortages, and pressure on social services. Ways to reduce high growth include economic development, birth control programs, and increasing literacy. DCs have slower or declining growth due to lower birth rates from family planning, education, higher costs of living, and preferences for smaller families.

1. Chong Boon Secondary School
Humanities Department (Geography Unit)
Lower Secondary Geography (Sec Two)
Prepared by Mr Kelwin Koh

2.  At the end of this unit you will be able to :
1. Calculate rate of natural increase
2. Identify the causes, consequences and
responses for high rate of population
increase.
3. Identify the causes, consequences and
responses for low rate of population
increase.

3.  High in Less Developed Countries (LDCs)
 India, Indonesia, Brazil, etc.
 Caused by high birth rates due to
 Early marriage
 Children seen as wealth
 High number of child deaths
 Lack of birth control knowledge
 Preference for a male child
 Religious beliefs

4.  As early as 15 years old.
Women who marry young more
likely to have more children.
 Longer potential fertility period

5.  Children viewed as assets.
 Free labour on farms.
Tradition of filial piety.
 Children will look after their
parents
 Bring in additional income

6.  Lack of basic health care services.
 Bad water and food hygiene.
 Easy spread of diseases.
 Children die easily of common
ailments
 Additional children seen as security /
insurance.

7.  People ignorant of birth control
methods.
 Illiterate
 Not well-informed
 Lacking in available information
 Birth Control might not be readily
available

8.  Asian (Patriarchal ) societies
prefer male children.
 Carry on the family name
 Inherit the family business
People keep giving birth if they
don’t have male offspring.

9. Some religions do not allow
use of contraceptives
Contravenes the religious
beliefs
Catholics & Muslims

10. Humans require resources.
Earth has finite resources.
More humans means less
resource for each person
Reduction in quality of life.

11. 1.Overcrowding
2.Food shortage
3. Pressure on social
services
4.Social problems

12.  Congestion due to lack of space.
 Growth of slums (eg Sao Paulo, Brazil)
 1100 people living in a square kilometre of
land
 Large population causes high pressure
on food production.
 Fields become over-cultivated as
farmers try to cope.
 Fields might end up destroyed

14.  Large population requires a lot of food.
 Green revolution has helped but might not be
always enough.
 Green revolution = use of technology to increase
food production
 Local food supply cannot meet increasing
demands.
 Young children might suffer from malnutrition
 Prone to diseases and poor health.

16.  Healthcare
 Lack of doctors, hospitals, clinics.
 Insufficient medical equipment and medication
 Poor education services
 Insufficient teachers, schools, books.
 Overcrowded public transport systems
 Overloaded transport systems a hazard

18.  Unemployment
 Result of rural urban migration (unskilled
labour in cities without jobs)
 High crime rate
 Unemployed and unskilled turn to crime
 Lack of basic hygiene
 No proper sanitation
 Crowded living conditions
▪ Leads to spread of diseases

21. 1.Economic
Development
2.Birth control and family
planning
3. Increase literacy rate

22.  Economic development tends to lower Birth
Rates
 Better standards of living reduces the desires
for young couples to have children
 Longer working hours and absence of need
for children
 City living, no need for free labour on the farm
 High costs of bringing up children in cities

23.  State enforced birth control.
 China’s 1 child policy
 State sponsored family planning.
 India’s birth control incentives
 Indonesia’s economic rewards for small
families
 Not always effective as other factors
come into play when couples plan for
families.

26.  Education for women and children
 Educated women enters the labour
force, reduces the potential child-bearing
time
 Educated children leads to faster
development of society
 High literacy rate facilitates family
planning information dissemination

27.  Developed Countries (DCs)
 Faced with population growth that is
slow, stagnant or even reducing
 Countries with highly developed
economies
▪ Switzerland, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore,
Germany, etc.

28. or

29.  Dependants
 Population that is not working
▪ Not contributing economically to the country
 0-14 years of age & above 60 years of age
 Working population
 Population that is contributing to the
economy of the country
 15-59 years of age

30.  LDC
 Less developed
country
 High BR
 Birth rate
 High DR
 Death rate
 Population
grows fast

31. DC
Low BR
Low DR
Population
grows slowly

32.  In your groups, construct the population
pyramids that you have been allocated
in the data sheet that is given.
 Draw it on the A3 Paper provided.
 At the bottom of the pyramid you have
created, write down whether it belongs
to a DC or LDC and state 2 countries
that you think will have such a pyramid.

33. 1. Successful family planning
programmes
2. Easily available birth control
3. Higher education level among women
4. Economic development
5. Later marriages
6. Preference for small families
7. Choice to remain single
8. High costs of living

34.  Ageing population
 More dependants (elderly) that the working
population need to support
 More resources need to be allocated to cater for
the needs of the elderly, less for other social needs
 Large retired population will require large amount
of financial aid
 Smaller population size
 Lesser citizens for national defence

35.  Pro-birth policies
 Financial incentives for couples who have children
▪ Baby Bonus Scheme
 Subsidies for childcare or domestic help
▪ Government subsidised childcare facilities
▪ Reduction in tax for employing domestic help
 Pro-family work environment
▪ Additional leave granted for childcare for workforce
with young children

36.  Complete the following exercise in
the next 10 minutes
 Turn to Pg27, read the information
above and answer both questions in
Activity 2 on the cards provided.
 Let’s go!

37. 1. Successful family planning programmes.
People follow the government’s advice and
have smaller families. This causes low
population growth.
2. Easily available birth control. People who
want to avoid getting pregnant, they can
easily buy birth control contraceptives.