On Tuesday (15 November), the United Nations (UN) announced that the world population has officially hit the eight billion mark. In a statement, the UN explained that this population growth could be attributed to human development, higher fertility rates and lower mortality rates, coupled with advancements in medicine, nutrition and public health.
While it took the global population 12 years to grow from 7 to 8 billion, it will take approximately 15 years— until 2037— for it to reach 9 billion, a sign that the overall growth rate of the global population is slowing.UNITED NATIONS