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![[PERÚ: 27 años] Oldest and YOUNGEST Populations | MAZAMORRA en morada | Scoop.it](https://img.scoop.it/fQOkXlAhO6BaFY3XB1Z-hTl72eJkfbmt4t8yenImKBVvK0kTmF0xjctABnaLJIm9)
"There are 1.2 billion people between the ages of 15 and 24 in the world today — and that means that many countries have populations younger than ever before. Some believe that this 'youth bulge' helps fuel social unrest — particularly when combined with high levels of youth unemployment. Youth unemployment is a 'global time bomb,' as long as today’s millennials remain 'hampered by weak economies, discrimination, and inequality of opportunity.' The world’s 15 youngest countries are all in Africa. Of the continent’s 200 million young people, about 75 million are unemployed.
On the flip side, an aging population presents a different set of problems: Japan and Germany are tied for the world’s oldest countries, with median ages of 46.1. Germany’s declining birth rate might mean that its population will decrease by 19 percent, shrinking to 66 million by 2060. An aging population has a huge economic impact: in Germany, it has meant a labor shortage, leaving jobs unfilled."
Demographics seemingly started with age as a metric many years ago and have evolved into marketing tools, political footballs, and ways to combat everything from obesity to social security. Africa is clearly the youngest and probably for a very morbid reason; AIDS and Ebola among other diseases have taken their toll on the sexually active and thus have reduced the average age of their population.
Germany seems to be the place to go for a job as the labor shortage will mean higher wages for the folks who are left. Japan has another issue; a healthy aging population that will strain the government's ability to financially take care of them.
I wonder if the unevenness of Europe is an indication of the two World wars that were fought mostly on the turf. Did some countries lose more than others? If more soldiers, presumably of baby making age, perished did this affect the countries ability to keep pace with the Germany's and Spain's of Europe?
Diet seems to play a large part as well as the Mediterranean is well represented in terms of age. Does their healthy diet of fish, nuts, legumes and olive oil make a difference?
I could spend all day postulating, but I'll leave some of the findings for you to discover...
The median age of a population call be a quite telling statistic--almost a surrogate for a population pyramid. I post this with a special attention to Sub-Saharan Africa; the youngest 15 countries in the world are all in Africa, one of the major demographic realities confronting African economies and politics. Here is a map with the median age of U.S. counties.
Tag: population, demographic transition model, population pyramids.