Cairo: Egypt’s population reached 105 million on Saturday, according to a population clock linked to the government’s birth and death registration database.
On October 1, 2022, the database put the population at 104 million, meaning an increase of 1 million in 245 days – eight months and five days.
“An increase of 1 million people in eight months is very worrying. This level of population growth presents a formidable challenge and obstacle to the Egyptian state as it hinders the path of development,” Fatima Mahmoud, an expert at the Center for Demography in Cairo, told Arab News.
Mahmood stressed the government’s strong intention to manage population growth, highlighting that it puts considerable strain on the state’s resources and budget.
“Though the increase is indeed alarming, the situation is not entirely hopeless. An analysis of data on the difference between birth and death rates shows that the most recent increase of 1 million occurred in 245 days.
“In comparison, the pre-million increase was achieved in only 221 days, about 24 days (less). This indicates a significant decline in the birth rate, a positive trend that should be supported by the government,” she said.
“An aid package should be given to families with two children, while community support should be stopped for families with more than two children. Mehmood said the government should innovate beyond traditional means to effectively control population growth as it is a major threat to development.
Meanwhile, the latest report from the Maat Foundation, which specializes in community studies, said Egypt’s population growth “negatively affects” the country’s ability to achieve sustainable development.
It explained: “The economic consequences of population growth include higher consumption among individuals, increased state expenditure on services, widespread unemployment, reduction in wages in both public and private sectors, increase in housing prices, urban expansion on agricultural land, loss of public facilities and Decline of GDP and increased allocation of public expenditure on essential services such as education, health, transport, housing, social security and security.
“All these effects are unfortunately at the expense of capital expenditure on developmental projects in primary productive sectors such as agriculture and transformational industries.”
However, Dr. Alia al-Mahdi, professor at the Faculty of Economics and Political Science at Cairo University, argued that population growth “is not necessarily an obstacle to economic growth.”
He said: “A large population can become a positive factor for achieving growth and economic development if the state utilizes human resources effectively, as shown in countries such as India and China, each with a population of 1 over a billion.”
Al-Mahdi said: “Economic decline, decline and sluggish growth rates are usually catalysts for increases in population growth. Conversely, population growth rates decline when the economy is performing well and incomes are rising. This This is reflected in the increasing desire of citizens to increase the quality of life, resulting in a decrease in the birth rate.