NEW DELHI, 25 Jun: There is a need to rectify the notion that countries with large populations contribute more to emissions, a senior UNFPA official said, underlining that developing nations face the worst impact despite being some of the lowest producers of greenhouse gases.
According to United Nations estimates, India has become the most populous country in the world with over 142 crore people. However, the government is yet to conduct a census for an official figure.
Speaking to PTI, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Director of Technical Division Dr Julitta Onabanjo said that one of the things “we definitely are trying to also correct is this notion that because you have a large population, it’s contributing to climate emissions.”
“What matters is the pattern of consumption. And we know that, for the most part, it’s the developing countries that face the worst impact; yet, they have contributed the least to greenhouse gases,” she said.
“We would like to build more awareness on this issue,” Onabanjo said, and added that the richest nations, many of which have populations that are stable or declining, are those with the highest emissions, the highest consumption patterns, and the largest carbon footprint.
“Data show that the richest half of nations account for 86 percent of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions, even though they have the lowest fertility rates,” the official said.
“However, the nations with younger populations, and relatively higher population growth, also have the lowest rates of carbon emission, the smallest footprint, and yet they bear the brunt of climate vulnerabilities and impact. Placing the burden of climate change mitigation efforts on women’s bodies diverts responsibility from governments and the private sector, particularly those with financial investment in fossil fuels,” she explained.
On India becoming the most populous nation, Onabanjo said that the country has a large youthful population that has so much to offer in terms of human capital.
“India’s investment in its youthful population, especially in health, education, capacities, skills and employment and entrepreneurship, will make a real difference to how India reaches its aspirations of a developed country,” Onabanjo said.
The other characteristic of India’s demography, she said, is that its national average fertility rate has gone below the replacement rate but there are significant variations in the fertility rate that opens up new opportunities for development.
She said, “The southern states of India in particular have had low fertility rates for decades now, while most of the northern and eastern states have higher fertility from where most of the population growth is coming.”
“This is an opportunity for India to invest and gain from well-managed migration policies. What we see is a lot of internal migration prospects, again, for jobs, rural-urban movements, etc, and I think that’s healthy,” the UNFPA official added.
Onabanjo is on a visit to India and has a number of engagements, including a field visit to Rajasthan. (PTI)