Answer to Question #270406 in Economics for Kame

Question

3: With world population approaching 8 billion people, on its way to a projected 10 billion shortly after mid-century, is rapid population growth threatening the economic progress of low-income countries? 

Why do poor families have more children than families that have moved out of poverty? Does having large families make economic sense in an environment of widespread poverty and financial insecurity?

Answer 1

Rapid growth has outstripped increases in food production, and population pressure has led to the overuse of arable land and its destruction. Rapid growth has also hampered economic development and caused massive unemployment.

Families in poverty, particularly those who make their living through agriculture, may have more kids as a way of supporting the family's livelihood. Children are often tasked with chores like walking to collect water, gardening, field work and animal care, even when they're very young.