Category Archives: Population

The Higher Cost of Higher Education

higher-education-international-studentsStudying abroad can be very expensive, specially if you are looking at universities in Australia or the United States.

The average cost of higher education for international students is very high in Australia, where a student is expected to pay a total of $38,516 in annual fees and cost of living. Australia is followed by the U.S. where the average cost of one year of higher education is estimated at $35,705. Other countries with a steep tab on higher education include the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, Singapore, and Hong Kong.

On the other hand, more affordable higher education can be found in Germany, where the average cost of one year of college annual fees plus cost of living is estimated at $6,285. Other countries with affordable higher education include Spain, Taiwan, China, and Russia.

Source: International Business Times- International Students: Higher Education Is Really Inexpensive In Germany, But Not In The US [CHARTS]

 

The Most and Least Ethnically Diverse Countries

diversity map harvardUsing data from the Harvard Institute for Economic Research, The Washington Post created this map that shows how ethnically diverse is a country.

Dark green countries are the more ethnically diverse. Such is the case of Canada, Mexico, several South American countries, including Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador. The most ethnically diverse countries are located in Africa. In contrast, dark orange countries are more ethnically homogenous. That is the case of most European nations, China, Japan, South and North Korea, and Australia.

 

Total Population Undernourished in 2012

undernourishment hunger map 2012About 870 million people are still undernourished around the world, specially in developing countries. Undernourishment is defined as the lack of sufficient caloric intake.

The situation is specially serious in Africa. In countries like Sudan, South Sudan, Eritrea, etc. more than 35% of the population is undernourished. Other countries where a high percentage of the population is undernourished include North Korea, Laos, Paraguay, Haiti, to name a few.

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations: The FAO Hunger Map 2012

 

The Failed States Index 2013

failed state index 2013Fund For Peace just released the Failed State Index (FSI) 2013. The FSI measures the level of risk in each country using a series of risk indicators such as mounting demographic pressures, massive movement of refugees, uneven economic development, poverty, legitimacy of the state, progressive deterioration of human services, violation of human rights, violation of the rule of law, security apparatus, intervention of external actors, etc. The FSI is calculated for a total of 178 countries.

Nations ranking at the top for failed states (red) include Somalia, Congo, Sudan, and South Sudan. Unfortunately, most of the world’s nations seem to be under a warning (orange) for failed states, from Africa to Asia to Latin America.

For the complete list of countries, rankings and scores, please visit: Fund For Peace: Failed State Index (FSI) 2013

 

Violence Against Women by World Region

violence against womenIn this chart published by The Economist we look at two sets of data about violence against women.

The first one shows that more than a third (39%) of homicides of women around the world are committed by a previous or current partner. The numbers are specially shocking for South East Asia (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar [Burma], Thailand, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia, East Timor, Indonesia, Philippines, and Singapore). The numbers are also high for Latin American and African countries.

The second set of data shows that 30% of women around the world have experienced physical or sexual violence during their lifetime by a former or current partner. The numbers are the highest for Central African countries (Burundi, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda),  followed by countries in West Africa (Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, etc.), South Asia (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka), the Andean region of South America (Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia), the Middle East, and North Africa.

 

World Population Growth Over Time

population growth over time 1800-2050

World population growth accelerated in the last century. During the twentieth century alone, the number of people increased from 1.5 billion to 6 billion.

In the year 1800 the world’s population had reached 1 billion, with most people living in Asia and Europe. By 1927, 127 years later, the population of the world had doubled, reaching an staggering 2 billion people.

population growth over time 1927Population growth remained almost the same until 1950 when advances in science and medicine increased life expectancy, specially in developed nations.

The world’s population reached 3 billion inhabitants by 1960, 4 billion by 1974, 5 billion by 1987, 6 billion by 1999, 7 billion by 2011.

population growth over time 2050It is estimated that the population of the world will reach 8 billion by 2024, and 9 billion by 2050. Most of the growth will occur in developing nations

Source: NOVA: Human Numbers Through Time

 

The Effect of Immunizations on Infectious Diseases

inmunization in1900 and 2010Vaccinations have helped decrease the number of cases of infectious diseases in the last 110 years.

The bubble chart on the left shows the number of cases of infectious diseases in the United States in the 1900s. Even though diseases like measles, pertussis, mumps, and rubella that used to infect hundreds of thousands of people have not disappeared, nowadays they infect a much lower number of people thanks to the use of vaccines, as shown on the bubble chart on the right.

Source: Vaccines.com

 

Male and Female Literacy Rates by Country

global literacy ratesLiteracy rate is defined as the number of people 15 years or older who can read and write. According to a study published by the Oxford Internet Institute at University of Oxford, global literacy rate is 82%. While the literacy rate for men is 87%, the rate for women is 77%.

Looking at data per continent, we find that countries in the Americas are highly literate, 99% for both men and women in the United States, and 97% for both men and women in Argentina. European countries show high literacy rates as well, above 91% for both men and women.

Many nations in Asia also show high literacy rates, except for countries like India, certain neighboring countries and countries in the Middle East, where the literacy rates are even lower for women.

Most African countries have very low literacy rates, with few exceptions: South Africa, Lesotho, Kenya, and Namibia.

 

Gay Marriage by Country

gay marriage around the worldTo date, 15 countries allow gay marriage: Canada, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Netherlands, Belgium, France, Spain, Portugal, South Africa, and New Zealand.

Same-sex marriage is legal in some jurisdictions of Mexico and the United States. Currently, 12 states in the U.S. permit same-sex marriage, while 30 states have amended their constitutions to ban it.

Resource: Pew Research Center: A global snapshot of same-sex marriage

 

Number of Deaths Caused by Air Pollution by Country

pollution deaths by 1000 populationOutdoor air pollution kills more than a million people every year globally. This map by the World Health Organization (WHO) shows the number of deaths caused by urban air pollution (UAP) per 1,000 people.

Based on data for 2002, the highest number of deaths caused by UAP occurred in Argentina and Uruguay in the Americas; Ukraine, Romania and Bulgaria in Europe; Iraq, Turkey, and Azerbaijan in Asia.