Lecture # 5: Population in Bangladesh Objectives To Discuss the Dilemma of Over Population To Discuss the Problems & Prospects of Over Population To Discuss the Relationship between Population Growth & Other Variables To Discuss the Remedial Policies of Over Population Presented by Abul Kalam Azad Senior Lecturer, GED Northern University Bangladesh E-mail: kalamadd@gmail.com

Introduction Demographers and economists have a great enthusiasm to detect the cause-effect relationship between population growth and economic development. One group says that over population is the obstacle to development. Another group views a good amount of human resources as the prerequisite for economic development. But unplanned growth of population may deter the economic growth of a country. So, both overpopulation and under population stand as obstacle to economic development.

But a balanced size of population is essential for smooth economic growth. Although Bangladesh is abundantly rich in human resources, this huge reserve is virtually untapped; its contribution to the economic development is obviously poor. A large number of active labor force is unemployed, of which most live in rural areas. So, let’s now discuss the problems and prospects of population in Bangladesh.

Population in BD: Problems and Prospects The current population in Bangladesh has posed such an alarming situation that policymakers need to take the initiatives on the basis of not only the existing population size but also the size of the projected population over the next forty to fifty years. So, it was high time for the policymakers to delineate policies for sustainable development in the light of growth of population and environmental degradation. Let’s cast our glance at the population stats of the country.

Table: Population growth Rate in BD Year Population growth rate (%) 2000 1.59 2001 2002 2003 2.06 2004 2.08 2005 2.09 2006 2007 2.056 2008 2.022 2009 1.292 Source: Source: The World Fact book, 2 April, 2009

Table: Demographic Stats in BD (July 2009 est.) Population 156,050,883 Population growth rate 1.292% Birth rate 28.86 (births/1,000 population, 2008 est.) Death rate 8 (deaths/1,000 population, 2008 est.) Infant mortality rate 59.02 (deaths/1,000 live births) Life expectancy 60.25 years Total fertility rate 2.74 (children born/woman) Labor force 70.86 million (2008 est.) Unemployment rate 2.5% (2008 est.) Population below poverty line 45% (2004 est.) [Source: Ibid] Source: Ibid

Population and Environment The above figures indicate that for Bangladesh where the population size is quite high, the positive impact of population growth is not sufficient to offset the negative associations in the long run and this can be a crucial factor in the relationship between population growth and economic growth in Bangladesh. Now, we’ll detect the relationship between population growth and different variables as follows: Population and Environment According to the alarmists there is a close link between population growth and environment.

However, the revisionists believe that although there might be some sort of linkage between population growth and economic growth, particularly in the developing countries, there is no such relationship between population growth and environmental problems. A 1986 report of the National Academy of Sciences termed population growth as the cause of resource exhaustion, but further argued that markets would eventually solve the problem of population growth and environmental degradation. Bangladesh has been increasingly confronting issues such

as greenhouse effect, impact of climate change, loss of biodiversity, deforestation, air and water pollution, energy crisis and its impact on the population. In addition, the country is facing growing problems arising out of urbanization due to rural over-population which has contributed to the emergence of urban slums and on floating population which have led to a particular variety of environmental problems such as deteriorating living standards in over crowded places, extensive use of polythene, lack of safe drinking water, drainage etc.

Population and Economic Growth The relationship between population growth and economic growth can be explained to a great extent by the human capital accumulation factors of education, health and nutrition. In other words, the improvement in human capital accumulation factors can reduce the rate of population growth and can provide the necessary impetus to improve the economic growth of Bangladesh.

Population Growth and Poverty Population growth results in an increase of income inequality and leads to a increase in the share of income for the poorest group of the population. Thus, population growth causes poverty in three ways: It increases the pressure on land; It leads to a rise in cost of the consumption of goods because of the scarcity of complementary factors to increase their supplies; It is causing a decline in the accumulation of capital. Because with increase of family members, consumption expenses increase.

Population and agricultural development With population growth, the land man ratio becomes adverse. According to recently published 'Agricultural census-'96’ per capita planted land is only 0.17 acres. Population and unemployment As population increases, the proportion of workers to total population rises. But in the absence of complementary resources, it is not possible to expand jobs. The result is that with the increase in labor force, unemployment increases. According to LFS 1995-96, there are 1.4 million unemployed labors in our economy which is surely more at present.

Population and social infrastructure Due to scarcity of resources it is not possible to provide educational, health, medical, transport and housing facilities to the entire population. As a result‑ the quality of these services has gone down; school age population and pressure on educational and training facilities has increased; It may aggravate the problem related to improvement of public health.

Population and labor force The labor force in an economy is the ratio of working population to total population. For a large percentage of the lower age group (1-15 years), the dependency ratio is large in the economy of Bangladesh.

What is to Be Done All the evils that result from over population must be removed from our economy as early as possible to ensure smooth and steady economic growth. The following measures may be taken for the purpose : Family planning Female labor force participation Restructuring the education system Integrated planning Need oriented technical vocational education

Rural Bias in education Equitable Distribution of population in each area Equitable distribution of National income International migration Accelerating the pace of development Social security Public awareness

Conclusion Over population is a great constraint in the way of progress and prosperity in our country. With other programs of economic development, stress should be pressed on controlling population growth within a short period of time. For this, there is no alternative to make the people aware about the severe consequences of over population in national life.